A Past Life
by Old Romantic
Summary: Sequel to Syd & Michel. Completely AU. Still on the premise of the movie Kate & Leopold. SV, JI & OCs. Sydney adjusts to life in 1890.
1. Prologue

**Originally posted online: Early 2004**  
**Disclaimer:** Sydney, Vaughn, and any other characters from Alias that will appear in this fic belong to the brilliant, the fabulous, the absolute _genius_ J.J. Abrams and his gang. I also don't own the idea of having Sydney go back in time to marry Vaughn. That came from the end of "Kate & Leopold". Thanks for letting me borrow them!

**A/N:** This fic was a personal challenge just to see if I could write what it would be like for Sydney back in 1890. Other than that, my only goal was giving you guys some more fluff out of the "Syd & Michel" storyline. Here's hoping I succeeded!

I also decided to go ahead and post as many chapters as I can at once, because I don't when I'll have this much internet access again, having to share the computer with hubby. If you're receiving e-mails for my updates, sorry about the onslaught!

_Any conversation between anyone other than Sydney and Vaughn when they are completely alone, should be assumed is being spoken in French._

Enjoy!!

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**  
Prologue (taken from the end of "Syd & Michel"):**

Sydney smiled when she found the anchored rope still hooked over Vaughn's balcony railing as she expected it would be, and climbed up the rope, half-expecting to find him sound asleep in his bed. But his room was still lighted as she tossed her leg over the railing and came to stand on the balcony floor. She froze when she saw him walk out of the doors twenty feet away. She was hidden in the shadows, so he didn't see her, and he leaned up against the wall between the two sets of doors, sighed loudly, and rubbed his face, staring back at the moon.

As much of a mess that he was, he was still a sight for sore eyes. Sydney wanted nothing more than to hold him and kiss him, and it all had to start with getting his attention. Taking a step toward him into the light, she called out, "Michael."

His head snapped up at the sound of her voice and his mouth dropped open as he stared at her for a long minute. "Sydney?" he finally asked, and she was sure he thought he was hallucinating by the disbelieving tone in his voice.

She took another step forward and nodded nervously. "Yes."

"You came back?" He was clearly confused.

"I came back to be with you," she answered, hoping that her words would straighten him out. She further convinced him he wasn't dreaming by adding, "I love you."

He was in front of her in three long strides, and wrapped his arms around her, breathing her in. He couldn't believe it was true, but he spoke the first words that came to his mind. "I love you so much." He followed that confession he finally got to complete saying to her wakened state, by asking the obvious questions. "How did you come back? I mean, what about the future--?"

She interrupted in order to explain his questions away. "Weiss is our great-great-grandson," she told him.

It took a second for that to register, and he pulled back to look into her eyes. "'_Our_'…?"

She smiled shyly. "If you'll have me."

Kissing her fully was his way of answering, pulling her tight against him, and deepening the kiss as much as he possibly could while they were standing up. Sydney didn't mind it and let herself fall into his firm embrace, and feel his tongue pleasurably sweep through her mouth.

They were both breathless and lightheaded when they finally broke apart and leaned their foreheads together. "I'm so glad you came back," he whispered, deep with emotion.

"I am too."

He tilted his head back. "What about your father? And your friends?"

"They gave me their blessing. They wanted me to be happy, and the only way I could be happy was with you."

He kissed her again in response, and held her face to meet her eyes again. "I love you," he repeated. "I wanted to say that all week."

"Me too," she admitted.

Vaughn suddenly felt his knees weaken with fatigue, and he laughed, "All of a sudden, I feel so tired."

"Why?"

"Well, it's probably because I didn't sleep at all after you left."

"I didn't either," she smiled. "I guess we should get some sleep."

"Mm-hmm. But, I don't have a guest room made up."

"We could share," she bit her bottom lip nervously after her suggestion.

He just grinned and turned to pull her into his room. "You know, I don't think I would want it any other way," he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder comfortably.

"Doesn't your mother live here?" He turned to look at her beside him and nodded. "How are you going to explain me to her?" she wondered out loud.

"I don't know," he admitted. "But I'm sure we'll think of something by morning."

She grinned, thinking of waking up with him in the morning again. "But, I thought you were tired," she just had to ask with a teasing lilt to her voice.

His face matched hers. "I am. But I want to spend the night with you."

Sydney actually blushed, feeling the heat travel all the way to her toes. "So…you don't want to go to sleep?"

Stopping beside his four-poster bed, he pulled her into his arms, making Sydney grin and show the dimples that he loved so much. Then he answered her question, leaning in to prepare for another smoldering kiss. "Not just yet."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

Michel Vaughn couldn't believe that he was actually holding Sydney in his arms again. When she'd left that morning, a hundred years into the future now, he'd thought that was the end; case closed; no chance for happiness. But the prediction of his father's watch had been right; it had stopped at the same moment his heart did—the moment he first saw Sydney Bristow. And love really does conquer all; even time.

And Sydney had made the ultimate sacrifice by leaving her life, her family, and her friends to be with him. That fact alone was enough to make him want to drown himself in her scent he'd found in the comfortable spot in the hollow of her neck and die happy. He tightened his arms around her, pulled himself closer to her back, and felt her shift beneath the covers of his bed, softly running her hand along his arm on her stomach.

Their first time had been everything he'd dreamed it would be and more. Where he had hesitated, Sydney had led. And where she'd been apprehensive, he'd been reassuring and loving. And by the time two hours had passed, they were completely sated, but neither of them could sleep, despite the exhaustion they were both under from their lack of sleep during the previous two nights. Instead, they'd gone between quietly talking about what had happened and getting lost in their own thoughts of the days since they'd met, and the days ahead of them.

It was Sydney's turn to speak up and break the silence. "Did you get a chance to talk to Elizabeth yet?"

"Mm-hmm," he nodded into her hair. "She came by today—or I mean, yesterday," he corrected, remembering that it was already almost dawn of the next day since his last conversation with his ex-fiancée.

Sydney smiled and pulled his arm tighter around her. "What happened?"

"I told her that I didn't love her and I didn't want to marry her," he answered simply.

"Was she mad?"

"No more than usual when she doesn't get her way."

Sydney turned slightly to look over her shoulder at him. "What do you mean? Was she…?"

"Spoiled?" he finished her question and then nodded with the funniest smirk on his face. "The worst I've ever seen. Most people are afraid to tell her no."

Sydney finished the roll to her back and reached up to touch his cheek. "I'm glad you didn't love her."

"I didn't know how special it was to marry someone you truly love until I met you."

Sydney took a deep breath of contentment as the smile on her face threatened to crack. "You always say the most perfect thing you could possibly say at the perfect time. Have you always been like that?"

He laughed, "No. In fact, until now, I've been a blubbering idiot. Or at least, that's what Elizabeth would tell me on occasion."

"She didn't."

"Oh, yes."

"And you…put up with her?"

He nodded. "At the time, her attitude seemed worth the rewards. It was a marriage our families both wanted."

Sydney sighed and looked down to where her hand was resting against his chest. "They're…they're not going to be happy with me, are they?"

Touching her chin, he lifted her face to look at him again. "They will be. And if they don't want to accept you, it doesn't matter anyway. You are the woman I love and you will be my wife, whether they like it or not. You saw proof," he reminded her. She'd already told him about the painting, and then he'd grilled her about their family, and what their son looked like.

Currently, his words made her smile again. "I'll be your wife," she repeated, just to feel the sound of the words on her lips.

Kissing her forehead, he mumbled a sure answer, and then suddenly rolled away and out of bed.

"Where are you going?" she asked, watching his backside silhouetted by the light of the flames in the fireplace as he walked naked across the room toward it.

"I want to make it official," he answered easily, grinning as if it were the most natural thing to say. He pulled open the secret drawer in the mantel, and took out the ring he'd already given to her once. 

Sydney saw what he was doing, and propped herself up on one elbow as he walked back toward her to tell him, "Just so you know, I gave my ring to Weiss before I came back." He stopped at the bedside and looked up from the ring in his hand to meet her eyes. His expression was unreadable, but it was definitely pleased. "I thought you and I would want him to have it," she finished.

"That's perfect," he smiled. "He deserved to have it more than anyone."

She smiled when she realized she'd made a favorable decision when she passed it on to their future great-great-grandson, and then listened as Vaughn sat down on the edge of the bed and began to speak. He held up the ring between them to explain, "My grandmother was Dutch. She was a wonderful woman with a lot of stories about her childhood and how she met my grandfather, who was a sheepherder in her town. She was from a wealthy family, and it took a long time for her to convince him that he was worthy enough for her. But she persisted because she loved him."

He paused and took Sydney's hand to slip the ring on her finger. Sydney grinned when she noticed that it was her _left_ hand he chose this time; effectively making their engagement official as he had hoped. He finished his story; "He bought this ring for her on their first anniversary, when he realized that her love for him was real and she wanted to have a family with him and grow old together. They did. He passed first, holding her hand as he took his last breaths, and telling her he loved her. And before she died, she gave this ring to me, and told me to only give it to the woman I truly loved." He shook his head. "I could never bring myself to give it to Elizabeth."

His love for her hit Sydney all of a sudden; as she tried to remember exactly how many days he'd known her when he gave her the ring the first time. When she realized how short of a time it was, she found herself mumbling, "But…you gave it to me before…"

He was a step ahead of her, "I already knew I loved you, and I knew I would never love anyone that much again."

Sydney brought herself up off of the bed to meet his lips, wrapping her hand around the back of his neck to draw him as close as she could. He braced himself against the mattress when she pulled him down on top of her, and then flipped them over until the length of her body was flush with his beneath her. She kissed him until she was satisfied, and then pulled away to admit, "I loved you by then too."

"Really?" he smiled as she brought her elbows above his shoulders to prop herself up the perfect distance from his gorgeous face and weave her fingers in his hair.

"Yep. I even said it to you while you were asleep a few nights…ago," she laughed when she realized it was ironically many nights into the future now.

His smile widened to a full-blown grin, laced with a few laugh lines at the corners of his mouth. "So did I."

"You did?" she asked surprised.

"I did."

They both sniffed a laugh as they got lost in their own memories of that first and so far, the best week of their lives as a couple, and met each other's eyes when a clock somewhere in the house chimed four times to announce the hour.

Vaughn ran his hands down her back and hugged her close. "I'd love to stay like this, but my mother will be up soon."

"At four a.m.?" Sydney asked in surprise.

He nodded, "She usually gets up before five. She always says that the most productive hours of the day are before dawn."

"So, what are we going to do?"

"Well…" He thought about that for a minute. "My…my cousin, Penelope, comes to visit once a month, and she keeps some of her clothes in one of the guest rooms so she doesn't have to pack as much when she comes. She's about your size, so I could get something for you to wear."

"Okay. But how are we going to explain why I'm coming out of _your_ room?"

Trying to hide the smirk that threatened to grow on his face at the thought of just keeping her there in his happiness, and dealing with the consequences later, he finally had a rational thought and answered, "You could come to the front door. I'll pretend to remember you from one of my trips to New York. We'll make up something."

Hearing a noise in the interior of the house, Vaughn gently pushed Sydney aside to get up out of bed to investigate. He crept to the door and opened it an inch, peeking out into the hall for a moment. He closed it again and turned with a worried expression as he rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. "We may have a problem," he spoke quietly, coming back to stand by the bed. "She's already up. I don't know how to get you out of the room."

"I could climb down the rope on the balcony, and then change clothes…" she couldn't think of a good place to change because she didn't really know the estate all that well.

"In the greenhouse," he thought out loud. "Mother doesn't usually go out there until after breakfast."

"Okay," she nodded, thankful they had a plan, and she turned to get up out of bed.

Vaughn met her on the other side as she was picking up her discarded clothes from a few hours before, and stopped her by pulling her into his arms. "This won't be for long, I promise."

"I know," she told him, and he believed she would be patient and tolerant by the look in her loving eyes. They kissed a temporary goodbye, and he promised to take her on a tour of the grounds while his mother was gardening and the servants were busy cleaning, so that they could be alone again. And then Vaughn reluctantly pulled away to slip on his pants to go into the guest bedroom a few doors down the hall for Penelope's clothes.

His mother was nowhere in sight, which was a good thing, and made it possible for him to retrieve several dresses and put them in a travel bag, so that Sydney wouldn't show up empty-handed if her cover was that she was coming for a visit. She was just buttoning her shirt when he came back into the room with the bag, and he walked over to her and dropped it at her feet to hug and kiss her again. "I'm going to miss you," he whispered against her lips.

"I'm not going anywhere," she whispered back with promise. "But I am going to need some sleep today." She reached up and touched the bags under one of his eyes with her thumb. "You look like you could use some too."

"Only if I can be with you."

She brought her face close to his, so that each of their breaths was shared. "We'll be together soon, right?" She felt him nod, and then, hearing another door close somewhere in the house, Sydney pulled away. "I'd better go. What time is late enough for me to come to the front door?"

"Seven?" he shrugged and then sighed for her, thinking of the three-hour long wait she would have in the greenhouse, while he leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. "Maybe we can think of something else."

"Vaughn, I'll be fine," she assured him, and he tilted his back to smile at her quizzically.

"'Vaughn'? Are you going to start calling me Michael before or after we get married?"

She blushed and playfully hit his shoulder. "Shut up. It's just a habit."

He chuckled with her, but his eyes were on fire when she met them again. His voice was full of emotion as he confessed, "I love you."

"I love you, too," she said and then kissed him one final time. "I'll see you in a few hours."

"I'll save breakfast for you," he promised.

"Good. I'm starving," she grinned, and then turned to walk out onto the balcony to make her _grand_ exit.

Vaughn followed her with the bag and watched as she threw her legs over the railing, one at a time, holding on to the rope and slowly climbed down to plant her feet firmly on the ground below. Seeing her 'okay' hand sign after she looked around her, he dropped the bag to the ground beside her. Picking it up and sharing a blow-kiss to each other with a little wave, she walked away, and he watched until she rounded the corner out of sight. He removed the grappling hook and pulled up the rope, and then walked into his bedroom to stow it in the bottom of his armoire.

He waited the remainder of the hour before exiting his bedroom at his usual time, and was glad to see that his mother was not around again. She often spent her mornings reorganizing or cleaning one room or one closet of the house, always keeping the servants on their toes. As Vaughn descended the stairs, he saw the household butler, Claude, walking past, and he decided to ask of his mother's whereabouts just to be safe.

"She's in the greenhouse, I believe, sir," he answered dutifully, but Vaughn's heart constricted with trepidation in his chest.

"The greenhouse? This early?"

"Yes, sir. She bought some new plants yesterday, and you know how she likes to put them in the ground as soon as possible."

"Yes," Vaughn managed to answer with a nod, dismissing Claude, and then he knew he'd better try to go rescue Sydney.

But before he could even get to the front door, it opened, and his mother pulled Sydney inside by the hand, as she was in mid-sentence talking about Michael.

The older woman stopped just inside the door when she came face-to-face with her son, and her face lit up. "Michel, look at this beautiful girl I found sleeping in my greenhouse." His gaze fell on his beloved Sydney who was busy giving him an apologetic look.

"Miss…Bristow," he said, remembering to act like he barely recognized her. "It's so nice to see you again."

"So, you do remember her?" Amèlie asked curiously, glancing back and forth between the two.

"Yes, I met her on my trip to New York last fall," he lied, using the story he'd made up in the hour since Sydney's departure.

"Well," Amèlie smiled. "That's good to know. Although I found her sleeping next to the bed where I usually have daisies; I already knew that she was innocent of any wrongdoing."

Sydney and Vaughn's eyes met and they both flickered with amusement, recalling the meaning to the little white flowers that his mother obviously put a lot of trust in. "You will be staying with us, won't you, dear?" Amèlie asked kindly.

Sydney looked to Vaughn and back at his mother. "If that's all right with you," she answered timidly.

"Of course. I'll have Josephine make up a room for you. Michel, keep her company."

Amèlie started to walk in the direction of the kitchen in search of their maid as Vaughn suggested, "I think I'll show Sy—Miss Bristow around the estate."

Guiding her out of the front door after his mother's approving nod, Sydney waited until they were far from earshot before she explained what had happened. "I'm sorry. I was so tired; I fell asleep leaning against the wall. When she woke me up, I nearly panicked. I just made up something about how I had been staying with a friend, who was called away for a family emergency in the middle of the night, and I didn't have any place to stay. I did tell her that I had met you in New York, and I was waiting for a decent hour to knock on the door and ask if I could stay with you."

Vaughn looked over at her as he led her across the grounds and grinned again. "That's perfect. You played off my mother's emotional side, and won her affections. Brilliant."

"Well, it didn't _feel_ brilliant. In fact, that was one of the worst bluffs I've ever come up with on the spot."

"At least she knows you're here. That was the easy part."

"Oh yeah?" she looked over at him. "You think it's going to get harder?"

"Mm-hmm," he nodded. "How do you think she's going to react when we suddenly we announce our engagement in a few days, if I've only met you on one trip last year?"

She raised her eyebrows and then dropped her line of sight to the ground below her feet. "Point taken." She caught a glimpse of her fashionable shoes she'd worn from the future, and said, "We also have to worry about clothes and shoes for me to wear."

"That'll be fairly easy. I'll take you shopping in town tomorrow."

She smiled in response and then they were both quiet, as they listened to the swishing of their steps through the thick grass.

Sydney thought about the day ahead, and felt the heaviness of missing the last two nights of sleep weighing on her. It reminded her, "I just thought of something that will definitely be difficult."

"What's that?"

"Sleeping in separate rooms," she teased, partly; biting her tongue in giddy anxiety, even though they'd already spent one full night together.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to his side, grinning about what he was going to say. "Who said we were going to follow _that_ rule anyway?" 


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

"I like what you've done with your hair," Vaughn commented, as he and Sydney walked toward the side of the house where the sun was coming up.

Sydney reached her free hand up to her hair and grinned, saying sarcastically, "Yeah, I'm sure it looks great. I pinned it up, because I wasn't sure if women…now…wear their hair down. And then I fell asleep on it, so it didn't exactly stay."

He smiled. "Well, you still look beautiful."

Her eyes rose to meet his and then finding the amount of love there, she teased, "Well, I think you're biased."

Squeezing her hand between them, he answered, "You're right. I am."

The estate was much larger than Sydney imagined, she realized, when they rounded the corner, although it was absolutely breathtaking in the light of the pink and red and gold sunrise. Vaughn wanted to show her every inch of what would now be her home, but stopped when Sydney hesitated with the view of the sun in front of them.

"You okay?" he asked when he realized she didn't want to continue. 

She smiled lightly. "It's so beautiful. And I want to see everything, Michael, but I really need to use the restroom. I haven't gone since I got here."

He berated himself for not thinking ahead, and closed the gap to hold her arms. "I'm sorry. I should've thought of that-- Let's go back inside."

Turning to walk with him, she asked curiously. "You mean, there's a…a toilet? Inside?"

He laughed. "Yes. We _are_ coming into the modern world slowly but surely."

"That's good to know," she smiled with relief, remembering how she'd spent the walk from the Tower to Vaughn's estate, thinking about the amenities she'd miss from the twenty-first century. "When I was walking here last night, I pictured having to do my business in an outhouse, even in the middle of the night."

They laughed together this time as they entered the back door and passed through the hall and up the steps to the bathroom. Vaughn allowed Sydney to enter and then waited outside the door for her, so that he could escort her to breakfast. Because she'd been discovered so early, she would actually get to eat with them, instead of him having to sneak food to her later.

She came out of the room to face him and sighed happily. "Feel better?" he asked and she smiled. 

"Much, thank you." She slipped her hand through the crook of his arm and turned to face him. "But I'm still starving."

He took a quick glance around to make sure they were still alone, and then lightly kissed her. At least, that was what it'd started out to be, but after the initial touch of their lips, neither of them wanted to let go. They kissed as long as possible without getting caught and then stood back, holding each other's hands between them. "May I escort you to breakfast?" Vaughn said politely, making Sydney grin.

After her nod, he led her by the arm to the dining room, where his mother was already sitting at the long table. He pulled out a chair across from his mother for Sydney, and then took the seat to Sydney's right at the head of the table. The three exchanged pleasantries until their breakfast was placed in front of them, and after a while, Amèlie set down her fork and asked Sydney how she met Michel.

"Oh, uh," Sydney set her fork down as well, and looked to Michael for help. "We were…"

"On the ferry," he answered for her. "Going from Long Island to Manhattan. She…had lost her hat…in the wind, and I helped her catch it," he made up as he went.

"Oh," Amèlie nodded suspiciously and then looked thoughtfully at Sydney. "I noticed you didn't bring a hat with you today. Is that a habit of yours? Losing hats?"

Sydney laughed slightly and finally nodded. "I guess it is. I must've left it at my friend's house."

"Do you usually carry only one?"

"Um, well, I wasn't planning on staying very long--"

"So you'll be leaving us soon?" Both Michel and Sydney knew from her tone of voice that she wasn't trying to get rid of her and was merely curious about Sydney's plans.

But Sydney almost panicked and her eyes went back and forth between Vaughn and his mother as she searched for an answer. Vaughn couldn't stand to see her fighting the inquisition on her own, so he rescued her. "Maman, Miss Bristow can stay as long as she likes."

She nodded at her son. "Of course, Michel. I'm only concerned about her going out in public without a hat."

"I'll take her shopping tomorrow for a new one, Maman."

Sydney relaxed and stifled a laugh at the importance of appearance and apparently, _hats_ in this century, and smiled easily when Amèlie solved the problem by adding, "Alright. Until then, she can borrow one of mine."

After breakfast, Sydney managed to politely excuse herself, pleading that she was tired from the lack of sleep from the night before. Without even looking at Vaughn, she could feel his eyes on her, humorously remembering exactly _what_ had kept her awake. Amèlie fortunately missed it, and showed Sydney to her new room.

Sydney fell asleep shortly after her head hit the soft pillow, stretched out on top of the comfortable duvet, and didn't wake until an hour or so later, when she felt an arm slip around her waist. She stirred slightly and rolled back to see Vaughn's smile and feel his kiss. "What are you doing in here?" she asked, once he released her lips. She clarified, "I mean, not that I mind…"

His grin was blinding to her sleepy eyes. "Maman went out for the rest of the day. She told me to tell you that you are welcome to pick out any one of her hats from her armoire if you wanted to go out as well."

"Well, that was sweet of her. But you still haven't told me what _you're_ doing here," she teased.

His half-grin was present with his answer, "I seemed to miss a lot of sleep the last couple of nights as well."

She ran her soft fingers down his cheek, and her thumb across his lips. "Sorry about that."

Lowering his lips to hers, he whispered, "I'm not."

Kissing her completely, but stopping before it went too far, Vaughn then laid down and pulled her snug into his arms to relax against him. Sydney rested her cheek on Vaughn's chest, and closed her eyes easily, quickly letting sleep claim her again.

Sydney woke first when Josephine knocked on the door that afternoon before dinner as she'd requested, and rolled to find Vaughn still dead to the world. She grinned at his serious, sleeping face, and leaned over to kiss his wrinkled forehead, and then his lips. He moved slightly, unconsciously tilting his head back to accept her lips a little easier, and as Sydney adjusted to kiss him more fully, she found with delight that he was lightly returning the kiss.

She pulled away after a moment, and said, "Hey," tenderly trying to wake him.

He stirred, and then his arm around her tightened, but he still didn't completely wake up.

"Michael," she tried again. Still nothing. She leaned over to bring her lips to his ear, and whispered, "I love you, Michael."

That did it. His arm tightened even more, his eyes opened slightly, but it was his grin that was bright and full of life that made Sydney smile with him.

"So, you _are_ awake," she teased.

"Because I now have a beautiful woman to wake up with, it's worth it."

She couldn't stop herself from kissing him, but why would she even try? She knew she was in love with him, and he with her, so what was the point in fighting it?

But, after a moment, the reality of their situation sank in. "Michael, we should get up. Do you know when your mother is coming home?"

"By the time dinner is served. What time is it?"

"I think it's about four-fifteen or so."

He sighed, tugging at her waist. "You're right. She'll be home soon."

"She's nice." The comment came out of nowhere. It was just something Sydney thought and spoke without stopping herself. With a little more thought, she added, "I like her."

His smile was lazy and full of love. "I think she likes you too."

"She barely knows me, Vaughn," she argued lightly. "I mean, I have an advantage because I'm in love with her son. But I'm a stranger to her."

Vaughn lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her fingertips. "Not for long, my darling."

Over dinner, Amèlie again asked Sydney questions, and Sydney was just glad that she hadn't heard from the servants that Michael was not around for the same amount of time that Sydney was napping. She answered as vaguely as possible, and Amèlie eventually turned her attention to Michael.

"Where has Elizabeth been lately, Michel?"

Sydney didn't breathe as she waited for Vaughn to answer in the moment of truth. "Actually, Maman, Elizabeth and I… We called off our engagement last night."

"What??" She was clearly shocked. "Michel, you must explain why!"

"I did not love her, Maman. And I wanted to have a marriage like yours was with my father."

Her argument was silenced on her lips for a brief moment, and then she shook her head, casting a glance at the younger woman. Sydney could sense that she didn't want to argue with her son in front of company, so she said instead, "Catherine will be so disappointed," speaking of her best friend, who was also Elizabeth's mother.

"I'm sure she'll get over it soon enough."

"Michel," she scolded quietly. "Shame on you for being so callous!"

"Maman, you know as well as I do how spoiled Elizabeth is. How could you want me to have that kind of wife if I don't love her?"

Sydney sat in silence, wishing she could sink back into the chair and disappear as Amèlie continued the inquisition. "Love comes softly in most marriages, Michel."

"I know that, Maman. But I also believe that it's possible to find love _before_ marriage."

Sydney hid the blush of her cheeks behind her cloth napkin as she discreetly wiped her mouth, and tried to pretend not to notice when Amèlie's eyes slid to look across the table at her. "Forgive us, Miss Bristow. We do not usually argue in front of guests."

"I understand," Sydney assured her.

Amèlie continued, "I just do not want my son to waste his life away, waiting for something that may not exist."

Chancing a quick glance at Sydney before meeting his mother's eyes again, he told her, "Well, I think it does, Maman. And I'm willing to wait for it."

After dinner was over, Sydney asked Vaughn to continue to finish the tour of the grounds around the estate before the sun went down. He smiled as he agreed, and took her arm again as they stepped outside, both of them saying a polite goodbye to his mother. Leading her around to the back of the house past where they'd gone earlier that day, Sydney was delighted to find a beautiful garden with every kind of flower planted or potted around a fresh, lily-pad covered pond. Her mouth dropped open slightly, and she whispered a breathless, "Wow," at the surreal sight in front of her.

Beyond the pond was a three-tiered fountain, and behind that was a wall with vine-covered arches for openings leading to some part of the yard not visible from where they stood. Part of her wanted to rush to see what was on the other side of those arches, but another part wanted to study every flower along the path that went around the rectangular pond first.

Taking it slowly won, and she held her hands together in front of her chest, as giddy as a child in a candy store, as Vaughn followed her, watching her bright face with amusement.

It hit him as she bent to smell the fifth plant she approached. This would be the spot where they would announce their engagement to his mother. Sydney turned to him, holding up a red rose still attached to a tall bush; he soon realized that she was trying to get him to smell its rich, sweet scent. He bent to smell it, and then pulled his pocketknife out and cut the stem, and handed it to her, holding her hand in both of his.

It was Sydney that closed the distance between them by taking a step toward him, and tilted her head back for a kiss. His arms automatically reached around her waist as his lips met hers, and her hands snaked their way up around his neck, flower and all, as the kiss deepened.

What seemed like minutes later, they released each other, but only slightly as Sydney kept her eyes shut to plead with him. She was sure that the passion she'd felt in the kiss was something that the man she loved had felt too, and made her think of the hours ahead. "Michael, tonight…" she couldn't even finish her sentence, or convey how much she wanted to spend the night with him again.

"I'll come and get you from your room after everyone's asleep," he promised, and Sydney knew without a doubt that she'd been right; he was thinking about the night ahead and their sleeping arrangements too.

She leaned her head back to look at him seriously. There wasn't any teasing in his eyes, or question of what he was suggesting. What he was saying was fact, and he was saying it with the purest form of love. "Okay," she said in relief, and then they both smiled and briefly kissed again. After a moment, she pulled away from his lips and turned her head to the archways to her left, and said, "But first, I want to see what's through there."

Laughing at her childlike interest, he held her hand to show her. 


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

The other side of the vine-covered archways was like another world. Every inch of the five-hundred square-foot garden was covered with even more plants and flowers than had been around the pond garden they'd just walked through. A meandering rock path led around in both directions from where Sydney and Vaughn stood in the entrance next to a heavy wooden gate, and a rock waterfall trickling into another, smaller pond was on the other side of the fenced-in paradise, where both paths merged; a reward for the journey.

Sydney couldn't hide the grin on her face as she stepped ahead of Vaughn in wonder. But without getting too far ahead, she turned back to him and held out her hand. Smiling back at her, he accepted it and let her pull him around on the path, as she took in everything in awe.

Stopping halfway when she reached a swing hanging from the only tall tree in the garden, she perched herself on it. Vaughn took the initiative and stepped behind her to get the swing started for her. It was well worth it when he heard her laughter and saw her smile as her head tilted back toward him on the forward swing.

It was in this position that he stopped her by holding the ropes, and he leaned down to kiss her upside-down face. Although different, it was also very sensual, until Sydney started giggling into his mouth just seconds before she lost her grip and fell on her back at his feet, even though he caught her shoulders to soften the blow. She reached up for his hand and pulled him down beside her onto the soft grass, leaned up to kiss him again, and pushed him down to his back.

Breaking the kiss when she was satisfied, Sydney lay down beside him and rested against his shoulder, turning her attention to the beautifully darkening pink and orange sky above them. "After we're married," she said softly, and Vaughn's head turned toward hers in curiosity, "I want this to be one place where we make love."

"Sydney," Vaughn said in shock and stared at the top of her head until she turned to look at him.

There was no question in her eyes; there was no remorse. She had meant it with every fiber of her being. For some reason, that little patch of grass next to the swing in that garden was like a little piece of heaven to her, and as the person who loved her, he couldn't deny her anything. So he simply smiled and slowly nodded in response.

Sydney rested against his shoulder again, and admitted, "In fact, if I wasn't worried with getting caught by your mother, I'd attack you right here and now."

He laughed; his chest rumbled under her hand. "Then I guess I'd better get you back inside."

Before she got up, Sydney asked, "What time is bedtime around here?"

"About an hour after sunset," he answered with his eyebrows crossed curiously.

Sydney stood up then, and stretched to her tiptoes to look over the wall from their spot, which seemed like the highest part of the ground within the four walls. She smiled when the sun wasn't visible from there as Vaughn stood up beside her. "Good," she joked. "It won't be long."

They laughed together then as he took her hand to lead her back out of the garden gate, past the fountain and around the pond toward the house. They only slowed when Sydney would notice a plant or a flower she hadn't seen before, and then their hands would find each other's again to continue on to the house.

Opening the back door with a smile, he suddenly dropped Sydney's hand when he saw his mother just inside the wide hallway, and hoped she hadn't seen their intimate contact.

Amèlie apparently didn't notice because she immediately started with, "Michel, I was just looking for you. I thought maybe you had gone on to bed."

Sydney tried not to smirk as he answered, "No, not yet. Did you need something, Maman?"

"Yes. I was just wondering how long you'll be gone shopping tomorrow?"

Vaughn looked to Sydney beside him and shrugged. "Maybe all day." Sydney didn't miss the twinkle in his eyes reserved just for her as he answered. "Did you want us back sooner than that?"

"Well," she sighed, "no, I guess not. I'm having some friends over for dinner and I just wanted to make sure you made it by then."

"Who's coming?" She didn't answer right away, and Vaughn got suspicious. "Maman, please tell me that you didn't invite Elizabeth and her parents here."

"Michel, you should give her another chance--"

"I am not giving her another chance, Maman. I do not love her. Nothing is going to change that. And I am not going to sit at the dining room table with her again. Nor am I going to subject Miss Bristow to that kind of unbearable tension."

"Well, they are my friends and _I_ am having them over for dinner. Surely, you can be civil." Without waiting for his retort, she walked away.

Sydney watched Vaughn's face until Amèlie was out of earshot, and she stepped in front of him to whisper, "Vaughn, I don't want to sit across the table from Elizabeth either."

"You won't have to, my love. We'll just stay out late tomorrow night."

Sydney felt relieved and a little curious at the same time. "And do what?"

His grin slowly grew on his face. "I'm sure we'll think of something."

She fully trusted him, but she couldn't help but tease him a little with, "I'm not breaking into the Louvre with you again, if that's what you're suggesting."

He laughed with her and pulled her hands up to his lips to kiss her fingertips before letting her go. Amèlie came back in a moment later, and said goodnight to the both of them before retreating up the stairs toward her bedroom, and Vaughn nodded his polite goodnight to "Miss Bristow" to throw off suspicion, and then waited as Sydney led the way up the stairs.

She was pacing her room for over an hour as she waited for Vaughn to come and get her as promised, and when she finally heard his silent knock, she rushed to the door, and pulled him inside, and pressed his back into the door, kissing him fully. She'd been patient long enough, in her opinion, so she didn't let him go right away.

Vaughn had to gently push her away as he chuckled, and said, "Wait. I have something to show you."

"What is it? Can you show me later?" she asked, kissing his cheeks and neck and shoulders as she worked at the buttons on his shirt.

"I think you'll want to see it now," he answered, trying to hold her back although he was allowing her to touch and kiss him any way she wanted.

His words intrigued her, so she backed off enough to let him quietly lead her to his bedroom. Opening the door, he watched her face as she took in the room, lighted only by the romantic glow of the fireplace, and filled with flowers of all colors and varieties everywhere. They were in several vases on his desk, the fireplace mantel, and on every other available table and chest, and she even noticed multi-colored rose petals scattered across the bed.

"Vaughn," she breathed, stepping into the room as he shut the door behind them. She was beyond speechless as she turned to look at him, hoping that an appropriate thank you would come to mind. He was standing a few feet away from her, just smiling with his hands in his pockets, and watching her. She was so overwhelmed with love for him that she couldn't even speak a word.

He took advantage of her silence to explain, "After tonight…watching your face light up in that garden… I made a promise to myself to always keep you surrounded by flowers."

There was a moment, a pause, where Sydney held her breath, unable to move, letting her love for the man in front of her wash over her in a wave of joy. Her feet eventually moved and within a few short seconds, she was standing in front of him. But her hands didn't automatically wrap around his neck as usual; she lifted her right hand and barely laid it across his chest, shaking her head. "You're…unbelievable," she finally whispered, too emotional yet to meet his eyes.

His hands left his pockets to place one on her waist and the other on her cheek as he kissed her forehead, and then lifted her face to kiss her lips as well. Sydney melted against his lips and felt her knees weaken, and her body warm up with desire as their arms wrapped around one another and the kiss deepened. Vaughn's fingertips finally found the intricate pearl buttons on the back of her dress, and began unfastening them from their loops.

Somewhere in the middle of all their passion, Sydney began to giggle and Vaughn pulled away slightly to look at her curiously. She explained, "I could've really used you this morning in the greenhouse. This dress was a real pain to get buttoned by myself."

He smiled. "I'm…so sorry. And from now on, Josephine will help you dress every morning."

"Really?" She seemed a little more than surprised.

"You don't want her help?"

"Well, I'd rather have yours," she teased, "but until our relationship is public knowledge, I guess I'll have to live with Josephine's." She made it sound melodramatic; all the while she was smiling.

"Oh, the worries you must have in your new life."

He had been teasing her, but the casual comment gave her pause, and she slowly stepped away from him and toward the bed, remembering how miserable she'd been just two weeks before. Her silence made Vaughn worry. "I didn't mean--" he started, but she held up her hand and shook her head.

"It's okay," she assured him. She turned back to face him, leaning on the edge of the mattress. "I just suddenly realized how lucky I am."

"I am too," he smiled, but Sydney shook her head.

"No, you don't understand. Before you…I was taking dangerous risks…practically killing myself. I never took a break from work because I was hell-bent on avenging Danny. But meeting you…" she looked up at him and met his eyes, "you saved my life."

He closed the distance between them and again held her face in his hands. "There will be less for you to do here. I wonder, will you be content in a life of leisure like what we had today?"

"With you?" she asked and he nodded. "Then, yes, I will always be happy."

They kissed to seal the promise of contentment in their future life together and then rested their foreheads together, not willing to part. "How long until we tell your mother about us?" she asked.

"Hmm…after tomorrow at least."

"Because of Elizabeth?"

He nodded. "I know my mother may seem overzealous, but I assure you she has the best of intentions. She just wants to make sure I'm not throwing my life away."

"Do you think you are?"

"No, I _know_ I'm not. _You_ are my future."

Sydney lightly pressed her lips against his and then asked, "So, the day after tomorrow then?"

"Definitely."

She had to stifle a yawn as Vaughn answered, and the small action made him smile. "Are you tired?" he asked, and she nodded. "Then I guess we should get some sleep."

He tried to walk away from her to walk to the other side of the bed, when she grabbed his shirt and pulled him back, wrapping her arms around his waist. The act made him smile again, as she teased, "You're not getting away that easily, Monsieur Vaughn."

When Sydney woke up the next morning, the first thing she noticed was the sunlight shining in the bedroom windows. She sat up quickly, thinking they'd overslept, and then realized that she was already alone in her newly assigned guest room. How she'd gotten there was a mystery, because the last thing she'd remembered was going to sleep in Vaughn's arms after their lovemaking, as they talked about shopping in town the next day.

Deciding that Vaughn must've carried her there in her sleep—_and_ dressed her in a nightgown, she noticed, feeling another wave of love for the gentleman that he was—she got out of bed and picked another dress out of "her" bag to wear for their day of shopping. She laughed when she pulled out her two choices and discovered that one was a sort of robe; Vaughn had certainly been in a hurry when he'd grabbed the dresses and stuffed them in the bag the previous morning.

Pulling out the remaining dress, Sydney held it up in the light and smiled. Made of a light blue chiffon, its two-layered skirt fell from a high empire waist and a low neckline, like something out of a Jane Austen movie Francie had rented the summer before back at home.

There was a knock on the door just then, and carrying the dress, Sydney padded her bare feet across the Oriental rug and wood floor to answer and found Josephine on the other side. "I came to help you dress, Miss," she said politely.

"Oh," Sydney said, thankful Vaughn had prepared for that the night before. She stepped back and opened the door wider to allow Josephine to enter, closed the door behind her, and then awkwardly held out her dress to the maid.

Josephine's eyes were unreadable, as she took the dress and walked across the room to lay it across the bed. She turned back to Sydney. "Where's your camisole and bloomers?"

"Um…" Sydney could guess what those two pieces of clothing were, but she had no idea where to find them, if any were available somewhere in the house.

"That's alright, miss," Josephine told her and then walked to the door. "I'll be right back."

She did come back a few minutes later with the pieces, having obtained them from somewhere, and then proceeded to show Sydney how to dress, helping her into the clothing and buttoning her dress.

Sydney thanked her and then noticed Josephine making her bed as she turned to leave the room. She started to say something to stop her, but then realized that it was the woman's job and saying something might be construed as odd. Instead, Sydney quietly left the room and went in search of Vaughn. 

She found him alone at the head of the dining room table, eating breakfast. His back was to her, and she noticed he seemed deep in thought as he ate and stared out the window across the room. She took the opportunity to study him for a moment, but she so wanted to see him smile, so she said, "Hi."

He turned and then practically jumped to his feet to welcome her. "Good morning," he smiled as she'd hoped. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah," she nodded, and then said, "There's something I want to ask you about that later."

He grinned, and Sydney knew he already knew that she was going to ask just _how_ she had gotten to her room. "Are you hungry?" he asked as one of the cooks came into the room.

"Famished," she admitted. She waited until they were both seated, her plate had been placed in front of her, and they were alone again to say, "Thanks for letting me sleep in."

"Well, with all of the late nights you've had…" he teased and she gave him a look.

"Yes, I believe you were there. How come you didn't sleep in too?"

"I did. I've only been up about an hour."

"Oh." She took a bite of her food as Vaughn's eyes traveled over her clothes.

"You look lovely."

"Thank you," she answered, looking down at her dress. "And thank you for sending in Josephine to help me dress," she assumed correctly, she knew when he nodded. "She was very helpful."

"You're welcome. I told her that you were not accustomed to French clothing."

"Well, that was the perfect thing to tell her, because otherwise I would've worn my old…um, underclothes," she finished quietly, hoping to get her point across. Vaughn had been puzzled their first night together when he'd undressed her to her bra, having never seen one before. So he currently nodded, although Sydney didn't miss the contented smirk on his face as he too recalled their first coupling.

She decided to change the subject before she started blushing all the way to her toes. "Where's your mother this morning?"

Vaughn set down his fork and wiped his mouth with his napkin. "Oh, she's gone to prepare for her dinner this evening."

"Prepare?"

He nodded, "She always buys a new hat for Elizabeth whenever she comes to visit."

"Again with the hats?" Sydney held up her hands. "Does she have some kind of obsession with them or something?"

Laughing, he admitted, "I suppose she does. Just wait until she realizes that you are no ordinary guest; she'll have you showered with them the minute she finds out about our relationship."

Sydney still needed reassurance and asked, "One more day, right?"

He reached across the space between them to cover her hand with his. "One more day." 


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

It was strange being back in the city of Paris with Vaughn, seeing it as he was used to, without as many buildings and comforts of her era. And Sydney was glad she took his mother up on her offer of a hat--had she been without one, she would've stood out. Every other woman on the street had her head covered.

She hung on to Vaughn's arm as he pointed out the places he loved once again, and unlike the last time, she actually got to see what he saw, including those things he had tried to describe to her on their first sightseeing tour, back in the twenty-first century.

And shopping was definitely fruitful. Vaughn bought her whatever she even hinted to liking, and made sure that she had all of her bases covered. From underwear to casual dresses, to shoes and formal wear, she had enough clothes to last a lifetime—which was what they both knew she would need. Arranging with each store to deliver their purchases to Vaughn's estate—being one of the wealthiest families had its advantages—Sydney and Vaughn decided to eat dinner out to avoid Elizabeth's visit altogether.

Vaughn chose his favorite restaurant for the occasion, and briefly spoke to the owner as they came in. It was obvious by the friendly way he greeted everyone he met, and the way they responded to him, that his personality was infectious. Sydney had felt that way already, but seeing him in his element, in his own time, was rewarding. As they waited the few minutes for a table to be cleared, Sydney let her hand slip down Vaughn's arm to his hand and she lightly squeezed it.

The little gesture made his head turn toward her and he smiled at her, dropping both of their hands between them to keep them together, hidden between the folds of their coats. As they were led to their table, however, he let go to lead her with his hand in the small of her back and once they arrived, he pulled out her chair for her.

After they were settled and alone again, Vaughn asked, "So…are you enjoying it here?"

She nodded with a smile, knowing that 'here' was not just a new place, but a new time. "It's nice. A lot slower than it was at home."

He took another sip of his wine, but not before asking, "Do you think you'll miss it?"

Sydney seriously considered that for a moment. Would she miss the fast pace, the cell phones and beepers, the never-ending case load at work, not to mention defying death on a daily basis? "_No_," she said a little more definitely than she'd intended, which made them both laugh.

Vaughn sobered as he reached out to lightly touch the back of her hand on the table. "I'm glad I got to be the one to pull you away from that life."

"Me too," she said lovingly. After a moment, her eyes drifted to the string quartet across the room playing the soft music that was floating through the openness of the restaurant with the help of the high ceiling. For a minute, she was lost in the memories of that life, wondering briefly what Francie and Will thought of her disappearance, how Woods and Weiss were handling the takedown and how that was going, and how her father was coping with missing her, even though all of it was a hundred years away from happening.

"Would you like to dance?" Vaughn asked, snapping Sydney back to the present.

She looked at him, and at the open floor space in front of the quartet where not even one person was standing, and then back at Vaughn. "No one else is dancing," she argued, wondering if that was even _done_ in this day and age in restaurants.

Vaughn answered her silent questions by offering his hand across the table as he stood up. "So?"

Smiling at his carefree attitude, she stood with him and let him lead her across the restaurant. There were strange looks from people they passed, Sydney noticed, but when she would look at Vaughn, his smile made all of the other people fade into the background. It reminded her of that night during dinner after their cruise when they felt like the only two people in the world.

Sydney felt lighter than air as they glided across the small open floor instead of feeling saddened with the prospect of losing Vaughn like she had that night. And over the course of dinner, they were able to talk about their future together and what it would be like. From the sound of it, Sydney was sure she'd be living in the lap of luxury. 

As Vaughn was discussing the duties of the servants, she interrupted and blurted out, "I have got to be the luckiest woman in the world."

He grinned and asked curiously, "Why?"

"Being here, away from the nightmare of a life I had before, living with a wealthy family without having to physically work for it and get by in life…" His eyes were smiling and loving as she spoke, so she added, "But…mostly I feel fortunate just being loved by _you_," she shook her head in amazement.

Vaughn silently reached across the table to lay his hand atop hers and after a moment locked in each other's gaze, speaking volumes without words, Sydney glanced out the windows over his shoulder. It was still light out, but she guessed it was almost sunset. "Do you think Elizabeth is gone by now?" she asked as she met his eyes again. She didn't even really care that they had not yet had dessert.

He nodded, "Probably. Elizabeth is polite, but she never likes to stay in one place for too long."

It seemed like everything he'd ever said about Elizabeth hadn't been the best of qualities, so she asked, "And you were going to _marry_ this woman?"

"I suppose I was blinded by duty to my family," he smirked, but all Sydney saw was the love for her in his eyes.

She felt the soft strokes of his finger on the back of her hand and flipped it over to return the gesture with her thumb. "Let's go home," she said, discreetly hiding the seductive nature of her tone behind her whisper and her dimpled smile.

Vaughn didn't hesitate standing up, pulling her with him, to guide her back out of the restaurant.

As they walked back to his estate by the fading light of the sun, Sydney asked if he walked everywhere he went, considering there were no cars as of yet. "Oh no," he answered. "We have horses."

She shook her head. "I didn't see any stables."

He smiled as they reached the front gate, and purposely guided her to the right side of the house, pointing off into the distance behind it. "See that building?"

Considering it was hidden among some very large trees on a side of the house she hadn't yet ventured, Sydney knew why she hadn't seen it before.

"Do you ride?" Vaughn asked as they continued up the walk.

She let out a breath of air as she nodded. "I haven't in a while. But I would love to again."

"Good," he smiled. "Then tomorrow."

Sydney tilted her head as she looked at him beside her. "Before or after we tell your mother about us?"

"We'll see," he promised and steered her to the front door.

They had just climbed the front steps when the door opened and Sydney, who was in front of Vaughn, came face-to-face with a blonde woman she assumed to be Elizabeth. Amèlie was behind her and said, "Oh, Michel, I'd hoped you'd be home soon." She and Elizabeth stepped back into the house to allow Sydney and Vaughn to both enter as well, closing the door behind them. "Miss Sydney Bristow, this is Miss Elizabeth Dubois," Amèlie introduced them and then turned to explain to the other woman. "Miss Bristow is a friend of Michel's from America."

"Oh," Elizabeth said, turning her gaze to Sydney, somehow looking down her nose at her, even though she stood at least six inches shorter than Sydney. "Michel's never mentioned you."

Sydney bit her tongue on the retort she almost blurted, and smiled when Vaughn beside her rescued her, "You never concerned yourself with the details of my travels, Elizabeth."

Surprisingly, instead of arguing, Elizabeth replied, "No, I suppose I didn't. Well," she turned back to Sydney. "It's nice to meet you. I take it you'll be joining Michel and Amèlie at the ball tomorrow night."

Sydney's eyes darted to Vaughn's wondering what she was talking about. "I'd forgotten," Vaughn explained, mostly for Sydney's benefit. Sydney was the only one to completely understand, considering he'd lived over a week's worth of adventure more than anyone else in his time, and could easily forget the mundane things of his life before. He turned back to Elizabeth. "We will probably not be attending."

"Nonsense, Michel," his mother argued. "Your aunt and uncle would be terribly disappointed if you didn't show."

He still wasn't going to push Sydney into it. "I'm sure Miss Bristow--"

"I'll go," Sydney interjected, knowing he was just trying to keep her from being uncomfortable. 

Vaughn blinked at her. "Are you sure?" he asked, and she nodded.

"It sounds…delightful," she added quietly, for lack of a better word in the situation.

"Good," Elizabeth said as if she'd succeeded to accomplish her goal, while she straightened her neck as if she was trying to make herself look taller. "I'll see you there."

Turning toward the door, she said her goodbyes and waited as Vaughn opened the door for her. Once she stepped outside, he closed the door and then turned to hear his mother retiring for the night, "Goodnight, Miss Bristow; Michel."

"Goodnight, Maman." Sydney smiled her greeting as Amèlie began the trip to her room.

Vaughn watched as his mother ascended the stairs and then quietly said to Sydney, "You don't have to go tomorrow."

"I know," she spoke softly. "But I want to. You don't need to disappoint your family on my behalf."

He shook his head amazed and spoke what overwhelmed him, "I love you." He couldn't help but feel that she was more selfless than anyone he'd ever known.

Sydney's face slowly grinned and she shyly dipped her head. "That's good," she said and then met his eyes again. "Because I love you too."

He lifted his hand to gently trace her cheek with his fingertips. "I'll come get you in an hour."

"No," Sydney shook her head, and Vaughn pulled away slightly in surprise. She continued with a smile, "I'll come on my own."

Sydney waited until the clock chimed nine times before she opened the door to her room and turned her ear to the hallway to listen for his mother. Hearing that all was quiet, she ventured out and took a few steps down the hall past the parlor when she heard, "Miss Bristow, is everything alright?"

It was his mother, sitting in the small room in the dark, and Sydney swallowed nervously, suddenly wishing she was wearing more than just a robe. When she'd put it on, it was mostly to seduce Vaughn and now it just seemed wrong on so many levels. She took a step toward the door to answer, and came up with a good lie. "I was a little hungry, and I thought I'd try to find something to eat in the kitchen. I hope you don't mind."

Amèlie stood up and crossed the room. "No, of course not, dear," she assured her. "In fact, I'll keep you company."

"No, it's okay--"

At that point, Amèlie had reached her and laid a hand on her arm. "It's fine. I cannot sleep anyway."

Sydney fell into step beside the older woman as she led the way toward the stairs. Vaughn's door was closed, but Sydney could see dim lighting peeking out from underneath it, and knew he was waiting for her. She hoped that Amèlie would want to go back to bed soon, so she could join him as planned.

But Amèlie was talkative and inquisitive, wanting to know about Sydney's life in America, and for the most part, Sydney was able to be honest. "I was in school to become a teacher, but," she shook her head, "it wasn't really working out as I'd planned."

"Why not?" Amèlie asked as she cut a few slices of fresh-baked bread.

Sydney tried to think of a plausible lie. "I just…it was taking longer than what I'd originally thought."

"So you quit?"

"No, not exactly. I'm…taking a break." She would officially "quit" in Amèlie's eyes once she and Vaughn announced the engagement.

"Do you want to marry?"

The bold question knocked Sydney back a step and she swallowed nervously. "Yes. Of course. I hope to someday."

"Is that what you are hoping for with Michel?"

Sydney was beginning to understand that Amèlie was not one to quietly sit and let life pass her by without her noticing the important things. Sydney stammered, "I…I…"

"I only ask because I've seen the way you look at him," Amèlie explained. "But…I would hope that Michel would not want to get involved in another relationship so soon after Elizabeth."

Sydney turned her attention to the bread she was buttering in her hand and tried to hide her burning cheeks, but Amèlie was watching her. "You love him, don't you?"

Surprisingly, Sydney felt tears pricking the backs of her eyelids as she fought to make eye contact with her future mother-in-law. Amèlie's eyes were tender, but Sydney knew she wanted the truth more than anything. Slowly, painfully, Sydney nodded, and then added softly, "Since the moment I met him."

There was a silent pause until Amèlie commented, "Then I suppose it's fortunate that his engagement ended when it did."

Sydney's head shot up again, wondering what she'd meant by that, but Amèlie was already halfway across the kitchen, leaving her alone. So Sydney spent the next ten minutes analyzing Amèlie's tone of voice throughout their entire conversation. She'd been definite and even-toned, but Sydney had the nagging feeling with that last comment that Amèlie was suspicious about her and her mysterious appearance into their lives.

Unable to come up with exactly what Amèlie had meant, Sydney decided to ask Vaughn about it, and quietly padded the way up the stairs. But Amèlie was passing through the hall from her bedroom toward the bathroom again, saying another polite goodnight to her. So Sydney surreptitiously bypassed Vaughn's room and returned the gesture as she went on to her room, and closed the door behind her. Feeling too afraid of getting caught again, she reluctantly went ahead and slipped in between the clean sheets and blankets on her bed, and thought about talking to Vaughn about his mother the next day.

As she rolled to face what had become Vaughn's side of the bed in the short time she'd known him, she pulled her extra pillow down from its spot and hugged it close, as a cold replacement for the warm, kind, and handsome man she loved. But deep down, she knew that there would be a thousand nights ahead that they would get to share, and it seemed like a small sacrifice to sleep alone until she and Vaughn told his mother about their engagement.

_Just until tomorrow_… Sydney was thinking as she drifted off to sleep.

# # # # # #


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Sydney noticed that Vaughn looked a little pale when she came downstairs for breakfast, and she wondered if he'd been awake most of the night worrying about her. She saw his visible sigh of relief when he saw her come in, but he didn't say anything because his mother entered the room just then and sat down at the table, talking to them both about that night's big event.

But, as soon as they were finished with breakfast, Vaughn made it a point to offer to take Sydney horseback riding as promised the day before, in front of his mother, so that they could be alone. Sydney was more than willing to go, mostly because she wanted to ask his opinion about what his mother had meant by her comments made during the night. Amélie walked with them as far as the greenhouse, and by then she and Vaughn were within earshot of the servants that tended to the animals, so they still couldn't talk privately. Then again, she was distracted by something else anyway.

"What is this?" she asked quietly, pointing to the saddle the stable boy had put on the horse she was to ride before he left them to tend to the rest of his duties.

Vaughn answered casually. "It's a side-saddle."

"A _side_-saddle? I don't know how to ride like that."

"You don't? How did you ride before?"

"With one leg on each side—like a man does, I guess."

"Oh," he nodded in understanding as he came to stand beside her. "Um…well, it's not…proper for a lady to ride that way."

Sydney sighed at the saddle and nodded. "It would be difficult anyway in this dress." She turned back to him. "Can you show me how?"

Her willingness to try elicited a smile from him, and he began to explain how to mount and control the horse in the side position, and helped her up. After a few turns around the stable, she decided she was ready to leave the building, and the two set off for a tour around the massive estate grounds.

Vaughn waited until they were well out of earshot from the stable hands before he ventured, "So, what happened to you last night?"

"Your mother," Sydney answered over the sound of their horses steps, shifting the reins in her fingers. "She caught me in the hallway, so I had to make up something about being hungry."

His face cracked a half-grin and she smirked, "Don't get all smug about it; it could've been you that had been caught and had to make up something."

"But it wasn't," he retorted teasingly. He tilted his head to the side and asked playfully. "Did you talk about me with her?"

"Yeeees…" she said slyly, and then sobered. "And I think she might be suspicious about us."

Vaughn's face fell. "Why?"

Sydney recapped her conversation with his mother, ending with Amélie's last comment about Vaughn's engagement ending. "What do you think she meant by that?"

"I don't know," Vaughn shook his head. "Maybe…"

"What?" she asked when he didn't continue.

He seemed really hesitant to say what was on his mind, as he toyed with the reins in his hands. The truth was, if his mother was daring to confront Sydney before their relationship was even hinted to, let alone made public, then she must be disappointed in his quick change of mind over which woman he wanted. In her eyes, it had only been the difference of a couple of days since he seemed to be happy with Elizabeth, although he'd really spent more than a week with Sydney falling in love with her.

"Vaughn?" Sydney interrupted his thoughts. Her voice sounded slightly worried as they continued to let their horses trot along the path toward their own small pond. "Whatever it is, you can tell me." She was concerned that there was some big secret that he was hiding, so she continued to assure him, "It won't change how I feel about you. Or our future together, for that matter." They already knew that they would be together one way or another, so neither of them had anything to lose.

"Would you mind if…" he started, and then tried again. "Could we postpone telling her about us for a little while longer?"

Sydney's gaze dropped from his face to the horizon ahead of them as she felt tears stinging her eyelids. Her automatic reaction was to complain and protest, but reminding herself that she knew they would be together in the end, she held her tongue. Holding off for another few days wouldn't hurt. "Okay," she said softly, swallowing the lump in her throat.

When they reached the edge of the pond, Vaughn dismounted and held onto Sydney's horse with one hand, and helped her down with the other. Tying their horses to the branch of a large, shady oak tree next to the water's edge, he guided her to the other side of the tree and pulled her into his arms. "I'm sorry. I know I promised--"

"It's alright." She wrapped her arms around his neck as well. "Just tell me you love me and I could wait forever."

The left half of his face curved into a grin. "I love you, but you already know that. I'd rather show you." Placing his lips on hers, he kissed and tasted her, having missed her during his sleepless state all night long.

After a while, they sat on the ground up against the tree, and Sydney nestled up against his chest. Vaughn yawned and Sydney took notice, tilting her head back to look up at his face. "Did you sleep at all last night?" she asked curiously.

"Some." He softly stroked the back of her arm. "For the first few hours, I considered coming to find you."

"Why didn't you?"

"I don't know," he shrugged slightly. "I thought maybe you were too tired, or that you'd changed your mind and decided not to come."

"Are you kidding me? And miss a chance to sleep comfortably in your arms?" She rested her cheek back against his shoulder and confessed, "I didn't sleep well either, but I was too afraid to try going to your room again. It's almost like your mother _knew_ we were sneaking around in the middle of the night to be with each other."

Vaughn was thoughtfully silent for a moment, wondering if that could be possible and what they could do to halt his mother's suspicions.

Sydney looked back up at him, reading his mind. "Oh no. I will not agree to stay apart night after night until she approves."

"I wasn't thinking that."

"Yes, you were."

"Okay, maybe," he conceded with a laugh. "But I knew that wouldn't work. I'm used to sleeping beside you by now."

"That's it? You're just _used_ to me?"

He laughed. "No. I need you. I _want_ you. I cannot live _without_ you."

"Now you're just mocking me," she grinned.

"A little," he nodded and then turned serious, lifting her chin toward him to look into her eyes. "But it's true. I _can't_ live without you."

Sydney spent the majority of the day after their horse ride preparing for the ball, as Vaughn suggested, while he spent some time working on his Rambaldi research he'd been neglecting. She took a leisurely bath, and then let Josephine dress her and do her hair, and when there was about an hour left before the ball, she ventured to Vaughn's room and knocked on the door.

He was just thinking that Sydney would be a big help when it came to Rambaldi, considering all of the work she'd done in her time, collecting the artifacts for her criminal boss, when he heard someone knock. "Come in," he said distractedly, thinking it was his mother.

Sydney heard his muffled voice through the door, so she turned the knob and stepped inside, and tried to ignore the way her heart was pounding with excitement, waiting to see what he would think of her ball attire.

Vaughn glanced up at his visitor twice before his eyes froze, staring at her. Her hair was up in a bun, with soft curls around her face, and her ivory colored dress showed off the perfect curves of her body. She closed the door behind her as he forced his throat to emit words. "Sydney," he breathed in awe. "You look…" "Beautiful" didn't seem like a strong enough word to describe her. "Like a dream come true," he finished instead.

"And I'm in the dream?" she asked playfully, as she took a couple of steps toward him.

He smiled wholeheartedly. "You _are_ the dream."

Closing the distance between them as she bashfully grinned, he tenderly placed his hands on her arms to hold her still, so that he could get an even better look at her.

Sydney watched him in amusement for the first couple of minutes, as his eyes traveled from her hair to her face, and down to her dress, where they stopped a little long on the cleavage peeking out from the low neckline of her gown. "Beautiful," he mouthed, and then pulled her to his lips and kissed her.

When he released her, Sydney laid a hand on his chest, over his everyday, more casual shirt he was wearing. "Why aren't you changed yet?"

"Oh, I was working," he told her, turning to lead her over to the desk. "Before you took the journal," they shared a smile, remembering, "I was trying to find the location of another artifact. I'd written some notes," he showed her the note page he was referring to, "and I was wondering if you might know anything about it."

Sydney took the page from him, noticing his perfect handwriting considering they were "notes", and read what he had concerning a music box built by Rambaldi. "I don't know this piece," she told him, "but Sloane only had me working on Rambaldi for a few months. I'm sorry."

He took the page back and smiled. "That's alright. I just thought I'd ask."

"It's probably better that I don't know anything; we wouldn't want to change anything in the future."

"True," he nodded. "Now," he said, turning them toward each other. "You have to leave," he smiled, "so I can get dressed."

"Need any help?" 

Kissing her nose, he answered, "I don't think you'd be much help." When she feigned hurt, he added, "But I will need help after the ball."

Sydney raised her eyebrows and grinned, deepening the dimples in both cheeks. "I'll be here. It's a date."

Vaughn's aunt and uncle's home was ornately and elegantly decorated, and filled to capacity with people by the time they arrived. Both Vaughn and Amélie did their best to introduce Sydney to everyone they greeted, including the hosts, Amélie's sister Monique Gervais, and her husband Luc, and Sydney politely made her acquaintance with each one, asking and answering questions, fitting right in to her part. Vaughn was immensely proud of her.

All the women were given a dance card as they came in, and Vaughn briefly and discreetly explained to her how it worked; that young men had to ask for a young woman to reserve any one certain dance, and when her card was full of names, that that was all she was allowed. He purposely and immediately asked her to reserve his favorite waltz for him, and she smiled as she wrote his name on the line.

Over the course of the next hour, she danced with several men who offered, and watched as Vaughn danced with several different women as well, including Elizabeth, who'd coerced him into asking her. She noticed that a couple of the women he danced with gazed at him dreamily, hopelessly in love with a man whose heart she'd managed to capture, and it made her inwardly cheer when she witnessed his polite indifference for the young ladies as they parted ways.

And when the waltz began, he came to stand in front of her, offering his hand for their promised dance. Sydney accepted it and followed him to the middle of the room, allowing him to envelop her into his comfortable arms for the duration of the song, completely enjoying every moment with the man she loved.

But by the end of the evening, she found herself and Vaughn standing uncomfortably in a circle with Elizabeth and her friends. As they drilled Sydney with questions, and Elizabeth hung on Vaughn's arm, Sydney started to feel like a fifth wheel. She didn't quite understand Elizabeth's possessiveness toward her ex-fiancé, but when one of Elizabeth's friends said something about her engagement to Michael, speaking in the _present_ tense, it became clear. Everyone included the conversation believed the wedding was still on.

Sydney furrowed her eyebrows and looked to Vaughn for him to correct the situation, but when he hesitated, and swallowed nervously, looking between her and Elizabeth, Sydney politely smiled and excused herself from the group. Standing beside the buffet table full of finger foods a few moments later, she heard an outburst of laughter, and when she turned, she saw that same group of friends, minus Vaughn and Elizabeth, were looking at her and having a good laugh at her expense. She'd had enough.

Collecting her wrap, and stepping back outside of the front door, Sydney breezed right past their coachman's questioning eyes and started walking toward Vaughn's house, thankful it wasn't too far away. She analyzed herself as she walked and realized she normally wouldn't have been affected by such a small thing; after all, she was Sydney Bristow, Double Agent, Super Spy. And she was letting a few unspoken words bring her down?

Still, once she arrived back at the estate, she went ahead and dressed for bed, and climbed in between the sheets of the bed in her own room, and tried to go to sleep as if it bothered her. And maybe it did. Maybe she was just a woman at heart.

Laying in the silence, she tried to rationalize Vaughn's actions to attempt to make herself feel better; that he couldn't very well tell Elizabeth off in front of everyone, or especially tell her that he was in love with Sydney just yet. But it still hurt knowing he kept quiet and let everyone believe that his engagement to the other woman was still very much intact. She wondered briefly where they'd disappeared to after she'd walked away from the group, but she didn't care. Reminding herself of their known future, she clung to that, keeping that picture of her and Vaughn and their son in her mind as she closed her eyes.

She felt a hand on her cheek, wiping away her quiet tears, before she knew anyone was in her room, and realized she must've drifted off to sleep. She opened her eyes to see Vaughn's pained expression on his face in front of her. "I am so sorry," he whispered, as he stood on both knees beside her bed and continued to stroke the hair away from her face. "I'm sorry I didn't stop them while you were with us. I'm sorry I made you think that I didn't care about you enough. But mostly, I'm sorry that I hurt you," she saw tears glistening in the corners of his eyes. "I love you and _only_ you."

Sydney sniffed and scooted to hug him right where he was, but she couldn't speak; her throat was choked with emotion.

He used her silence to tell her what had happened after she left the group, "I took Elizabeth to the side and immediately told her that if she didn't tell her friends and family that our engagement was called off, that I would divulge some of her secrets to them." He stroked Sydney's hair, keeping her head over his shoulder as he continued, "I also told her that I didn't love her; that I never really loved her, and that I'm in love with someone else."

She pulled back to look at his face. "You told her that?"

"Yes," he nodded. "And I want you beside me tomorrow morning, when I tell my mother about my love for you." His voice was determined and definite.

"Michael," she breathed, pulling him up onto the bed with her. He climbed toward her and then blanketed her body with his own, holding himself up with his elbows on either side of her, still stroking her face with his thumbs absentmindedly. "I love you," she whispered back, thankful that that unspoken disagreement was over before it ever really began.

Lowering his head to hers following an apologetic grin, he kissed her fully, caressing her body beneath his, when Sydney suddenly flipped them both over until she was half on top of him. She released his lips, peered over at him thoughtfully, and then asked, "So, what are some of Elizabeth's secrets?"

"What?" Vaughn chuckled, "Why?"

She shrugged, "I need ammunition for the next time I see her so she'll leave us both alone."

He laughed again and then suggested, "Let's save it for later. We still have an engagement and a wedding she could sabotage."

"That's true," Sydney agreed in a nod and then pulled herself away another inch to look at his face, picturing that painting again. After a moment, she thought out loud, "You look just like our son."

His arms tightened around her and he smiled crookedly. "You know, you have an unfair advantage, having seen him already."

"I know," she shrugged one shoulder playfully and then turned serious for a moment. "But it's also what's helping me through this, knowing that we'll be completely together someday and we'll have him to prove it."

He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, and looked deeply into her eyes. "I promise you that I will never again be the cause of your pain."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," she said evenly and his eyes darkened, slightly hurt. Then she explained with a playful smirk, "I still have childbirth to go through, and you will have been the cause of that, you know." She laughed, thinking of that day in the future, and then added, "I'm sure I'll remind you of that fact while I'm in labor."

He joined her laughing smile then, and lifted his head up to capture her lips with his own, whispering honestly, "I can't wait."

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	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

Sydney's eyes drifted closed in sleepiness in the darkness of her room, wrapped in Vaughn's comfortable arms, and she strained to stay awake long enough to mumble, "You know what I miss here?"

"What?" he asked, kissing her head resting in the crook of his neck.

"Alarm clocks," she answered in a murmur, quickly falling asleep after their hour of talking and lovemaking. "I want you to stay here for the whole night."

"So do I," he whispered, trying to think of a way that might be possible. He sat up a little when he remembered something. "Wait a minute."

Sydney slid off of him and sat up on her elbows as he jumped out of bed and lit a lamp beside the bed. Pulling on his pants to walk across the room toward the wardrobe, she asked, "What are you doing?" as he opened it, reached behind her clothes, and revealed a secret door that opened in the back.

"When my cousin James would come to visit when I was a child," he explained, "we would often play in all of the secret passageways in the house." He pointed to the doorway with his thumb. "This one leads to the basement."

She shook her head, "How does that help us?"

"There's another door from my room that also leads to the basement." He picked up his shirt from the floor and put it on as well, buttoning only a couple of the buttons, leaving it untucked. "If I can find it, then I can use it to get into my room, and it won't matter how long I stay here." Grabbing a nearby lantern from the mantel of her fireplace, and lighting it, he planned to check it out, and told her with a grin, "I'll be right back."

She smiled at his childlike enthusiasm, but still lightly warned, "Be careful."

He smiled back at her and then disappeared in the dark hole with his light, and she heard the quiet creak of his footsteps down what she assumed was a set of stairs. It was nearly a full fifteen minutes later, according to his new pocket watch he'd left beside her bed, when he returned through the same hole in the wall. "Did you find it?" she asked curiously.

"Yes," he nodded happily, setting the lantern back in its place and extinguishing it with one hand, "And I even brought you this." Approaching the bed, he pulled a small bouquet of flowers from behind his back and handed them to her.

Sydney recognized several varieties in the bundle as those collected from the enormous amount of flowers he'd set about his room the day before, and couldn't stop the grin that radiated from deep within her as she breathed them in. She pulled his face down to hers for a well-deserved kiss and then suggested, "Since you've solved our little sleeping in problem, why don't you get back into bed?"

He stood back up with a smile, dropped his pants to the floor as she set the flowers down on the nightstand, and then he turned off the lamp, and climbed into bed beside her, gathering her back into his arms. Waiting until her cheek was resting against his shoulder, and her arm was wrapped around his waist, he confessed, "I think tomorrow will be the first time in a long time that I will actually feel fully rested."

"Me too. And we'll need it." At his slightly questioning look she could just make out in the darkness when she leaned her head back to see his face, she explained, "For facing your mother at breakfast." She sighed as she got comfortable again, and he could sense the fear in her breath. "Are you nervous?" she asked before he could.

"A little. But…" his voice trailed off as he decided to tell her his reasons for wanting to tell his mother so soon. Stroking her hair away from her face, he told her, "It has to be done soon." He sat up a little so that he could look directly into her eyes through the dark room. "Sydney, you left _everything_ for me…your life, your family, your friends, the people you love…all for _me_." He paused with the weight of it all. "And when I consider that, I'm almost…_ashamed_ that it's taken me so long to do this _little_ thing of confessing my love for you to my mother. I owe you so much more than that."

Sydney rolled and pushed herself up onto her hands beside him and held back the tear in the corner of her eye as she strained to see his face through the veil of darkness in the room. She swallowed the lump in her throat at the words spoken by the man she loved, and leaned down to kiss him, and then said, "Thank you. But you were wrong about one thing." He looked curiously at her until she explained, "I left everyone I loved except the most important one…you."

Vaughn was thankful he'd remembered the secret passageways in the house, because it was well into the morning when he and Sydney awoke to the sounds of the birds chirping outside, and the daylight streaming in through the windows. Kissing her goodbye one last time after he'd dressed, he carefully tiptoed down the musty, secret stairs, and peeked into the basement before crossing the room to the passage to his bedroom.

Twenty minutes later, after he'd changed into a fresh set of clothes, he stepped out into the hall and ran into Sydney emerging from her room as well. Without hiding their mutual feelings, they said good morning to each other, and then descended the stairs together for breakfast. Amèlie was already sitting at the table, drinking her morning tea when the couple came in and greeted her. Vaughn swallowed nervously as he pulled out Sydney's chair and prepared to speak, standing behind Sydney with his hands on her shoulders.

"Maman--"

"Michel--" they both spoke at the same time, and being the gentleman that she'd raised him to be, he nodded for her to go first. She narrowed her eyes at the positioning of his hands, but went on, "Elizabeth was quite upset last evening after you left. Would you care to explain yourself?"

"It's simple, Maman. She was allowing everyone to believe that our engagement was still intact. I told her to correct it." He purposely left out the blackmail part.

"Why the hurry to make sure that your break up is well-known? Do you not realize the embarrassment of such public knowledge?"

"Yes," he nodded, "but I also know that it is wrong for everyone to believe I'm in love with one woman, when I'm really in love with another." Amèlie stared at him for a moment as the thought registered in her mind, and then her eyes slowly slid from Vaughn's down to the woman below him. Sydney was blushing nervously, staring back at her, and when Amèlie ventured a look back up at her son, he nodded. "Miss Bristow…Sydney…" he squeezed her shoulders, "Sydney and I are in love."

"Since when?" Amèlie asked the obvious. "She has only been here a few days. And before that, it has been months since you last saw her."

"I know," he nodded again. "But I can honestly say that I fell in love with Sydney at first sight."

"But you were engaged!" Amèlie exclaimed.

"Maman, my engagement to Elizabeth was a mistake from the beginning. I've always known it, but I kept up the charade to make you happy." He scooted to Sydney's side and looked down at her. "But now I've found the one person that makes _me_ happy." Meeting his mother's eyes again, he asked, "And I hope that is what you would wish for me too."

"Well," Amèlie said finally. "Miss Bristow seems to love you too, so I guess there's nothing to be done. However, we will have to give it some time before we announce the engagement--too soon would be…unthinkable." She shook her head disgustedly.

Vaughn smiled, despite his mother's negativity and walked around the table to kiss his mother's cheek. "Thank you, Maman."

"Don't thank me now--we still have the announcements to make." She stood up to leave. "I'm going to skip breakfast--I seemed to have lost my appetite."

As she started to leave the room, Sydney spoke for the first time, "Thank you, Madame Vaughn."

Amèlie stopped and met Sydney's eyes briefly. "Welcome to the family, Miss Bristow."

The couple was quiet for a few moments, looking toward the door where Amèlie had just exited. Finally, Sydney murmured, "She didn't seem incredibly happy about it."

He knelt down beside her. "She's just worried about the possibility of rumors of my having an affair. That's all. Give her time. She'll love you almost as much as I do."

Sydney placed her hand on his cheek, and leaned over to lightly meet his lips with her own. "I love you."

Hearing the clearing of a throat behind her, they broke apart and Vaughn stood up beside her. It was Josephine. "There's a man for you here, miss," she said and Sydney furrowed her eyebrows, cast a glance at Vaughn who was also confused, and turned back to wait for Josephine to continue. "He says he's your father."

Sydney stood up slowly in shock as the maid told them they could find the visitor in the parlor, and then left them. She turned to Vaughn beside her and shook her head, "Vaughn…how…?" she mumbled, the unasked question caught in her choked throat. He was just as stunned as she as they walked out of the room, with Vaughn's hand in hers in silent support, across the foyer to the parlor just off to the side.

Jack Bristow stood up from the small, ornate couch as they entered the room. "Dad?" Sydney asked automatically, letting go of Vaughn's hand long enough to close the gap between her and her father to hug his neck. "What? How?" she managed to ask over his shoulder while she continued to grip him tightly.

He pulled her back away from him, and held her face with one hand. "You look beautiful, Sydney. I'd forgotten…" She could tell that some time had passed by the addition of more gray to his hair, and the slightest hint of a few new wrinkles around his eyes. He looked to Vaughn and nodded a greeting, taking his hand from Sydney's cheek to shake the younger man's hand.

"How long…has it been?" Sydney interrupted.

"You left five years ago."

She shook her head as tears began to glisten in her eyes. "And you came back to see me?"

He nodded, "A lot of things have happened since you left, and…when…" he stopped completely, and continued on a new thought. "I asked Marshall to find out when the next window opened."

"How is everything? SD-6, the Alliance--any progress?"

He nodded again. "We took them down last year, thanks to Weiss taking your place, just as the Prophecy had stated. Marshall and Dixon both work for the Agency now."

"Good," Sydney said emotionally. "That's good." She cast a glance over at Vaughn and reached out for his hand. "How _is_ Eric?"

"He's good. Married. Has a baby on the way. He wanted me to tell you that it's a girl and they're planning on naming her Sydney after you."

She tearfully smiled at her future husband when Jack asked, "How are things here?"

"Fine," she smiled. "Different, but I'm adjusting."

"This life seems to suit you. You're practically radiant."

"Oh," she squeezed Vaughn's hand as she explained, "We just told Michael's mother about us a little while ago."

"She took the news well?"

"Well, no, but she didn't throw me out of the house either, so that's a good sign, I guess," Sydney joked. She turned sober again as she gazed at her father, suddenly realizing how much she had missed him. "So, how long can you stay?"

"Up to a week. I…I actually came to tell you something. Or more accurately, to show you something." At their puzzled looks, Jack passed them and led the way to the front door, and Sydney and Vaughn both followed obediently. Opening the door, he stepped down the few steps to the ground and waved to someone off to the side of the building.

A moment later, an older, thin but muscular brunette stepped into their line of sight, and it took a few seconds for the recognition to sink in for Sydney. But when she saw the way her father slipped his arm around the woman's waist, and a memory of the same action with the same two people happening when she was a child, tears sprang to her eyes for the second time in the last hour. "Mom?"

# # # # # #


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

Staring at her long-lost mother, the moisture in Sydney's eyes slowly turned to angry tears. She remembered instantly what her father had told her on the plane before she'd come back to be with Vaughn, and she could only imagine that _someone_ had lied to her yet again. "What are you doing here?" she finally spoke with a choked voice. "You're supposed to be dead."

Jack spoke up for his former wife when she seemed to be choked up at the moment. "Sydney--"

"Don't," she shook her head, suddenly not wanting an explanation, and turned to go back into the house.

Vaughn watched her go inside, closing the door behind her, and turned back to the older couple, eyeing the woman carefully. "She probably just needs a minute." He crossed his arms, blocking the door protectively, and waited for someone to say something.

Jack took a step forward. "I need to know if you and Sydney told your mother that her mother was dead."

Vaughn thought for a moment and slowly shook his head. "No, I don't think she knows."

"Good. Then we came just in time."

"What's going on?" Vaughn had to ask since Sydney was no longer around to do it herself.

"Is there someplace we can talk? Sydney needs to hear this."

The younger man nodded in understanding. "There's a garden with a pond behind the house. Wait for us there," he instructed, and then watched as Jack nodded and took the woman's elbow, turning to walk toward the side of the building. 

Vaughn waited until they were out of sight around the corner, before he went back inside to find Sydney. She was sprawled across her bed on her stomach when he came in, and her face was red and puffy from crying.

Closing the door softly behind him, he approached the bed and perched himself on the edge. "Syd," he whispered, reaching for her arms to pull her up and into his.

She wrapped herself around his waist and snuggled up against his chest, sniffling. "Did they say why she was here?"

"No," he spoke softly. "They're waiting for you." He paused for a moment as she remained quiet, and then he asked, "I understand why you're upset about seeing her alive after all of this time, but you seem angry instead of…thrilled, like I'd expected."

Sydney's head bobbed against his shirt when she realized their days and nights had been so filled with things to do and say, that the subject of her mother had never come up. Maybe she was subconsciously avoiding it, she wondered. "Before I left…home…" she sniffed again, "my father told me…" Her face started to scrunch again. "She was a murderer."

"She killed someone?"

"Not just some_one_. A dozen agents," Sydney said harshly. "And she only married my dad because of an assignment--she didn't really want me."

"He told you that?"

"No, not exactly," she tearfully admitted. "But why would she want me if she was just trying to steal secrets from him? I was probably just a burden or a mistake."

"You don't know that, Sydney. Maybe she did want you."

"No," she shook her head, refusing to believe it. "No. If she did want me, then why would she fake her death and let me grow up without her?"

Vaughn sighed and hugged her tighter. "I don't know. But maybe you should give her a chance to explain herself."

She pried herself out of his arms and looked at him incredulously. "Explain herself? How could any explanation she might possibly have be a good enough reason to leave her husband and daughter alone and grieving her death?! My father _barely_ recovered in twenty years!"

"Well, Syd," he said hesitantly, knowing she was going to hit the roof, "he seemed to be handling it well when he was outside a few minutes ago."

"What are you saying?" she asked, angry as he'd expected. "That my father lied to me and he knew my mother was alive the whole time??"

"No," he shook his head. "I just think he might have heard her reasons for what she did to both of you, and he's…accepted it."

She just glared for a moment, and he took a chance, "I think you should listen to what she has to say before you make any judgments about her…that's all."

"Fine," she retorted, and quickly scooted off the other side to storm around the foot of the bed to the door, complaining all the way, "Not that I'm going to believe anything she has to say anyway."

Before she could reach for the doorknob, Vaughn jumped up and managed to grab her arm from behind, spin her around, and pull her directly to his lips, kissing her passionately. His lips devoured hers until her stiffness loosened, and her fists uncurled at her sides and she slowly wrapped her arms around him in response. When he was satisfied that he'd done his job at calming her down, he released her, but only about an inch, keeping their bodies and faces close.

She took a breath and then asked emotionally, "Why…?"

"Because I want you to remember how much I love you. Because I want you to know that I will be standing beside you no matter what happens out there. Because whatever you feel, I feel. Remember that."

A few tears had welled up in her eyes as he'd spoken, caressing her cheek with his thumb the whole time. One drop slipped out onto her cheek, and he didn't hesitate to wipe it away, and then lightly kissed her again. Satisfied that she was emotionally prepared to face whatever truths were about to come out, he opened the door beside them, held her hand, and led her out of the house.

Her mother was sitting on a bench with Jack standing beside her in the garden when Sydney and Vaughn approached, hand-in-hand. She stood up to greet them again, getting Jack's attention with her movement, and they both turned to face the younger couple. Sydney was stoic as she glared at her mother, waiting silently for an explanation.

"Sydney, I know you have questions," Jack said, and then gestured to the bench beside them. "Why don't you sit down?"

She let go of Vaughn's hand long enough to cross her arms, and then reclaimed it with her other hand, still needing the support of his physical contact. "I'll stand, thanks."

Jack took a deep breath to begin. "About a year after you left, we tracked the organization run by 'The Man'--remember?" he paused and waited for her nod. She'd heard the nickname "The Man" from Sloane shortly before her Paris/time travel assignment. He continued, "Your mother…Irina," he gestured to her, "was 'The Man'." He paused for effect and waited until he saw the look of understanding in Sydney's eyes.

"When we were getting close to identifying her, she turned herself in to the CIA. She wanted to see both of us, but you were already gone. Everyone believed you were dead--only I knew the truth. So that was what I told her had happened to you.

"She grieved for you, but I was so angry," he admitted with a shake of his head. "I didn't see it at first. In my mind, she had betrayed us both and I wasn't willing to give her a chance to do it again."

Sydney let her eyes fall to the woman she'd known as Laura Bristow again sitting on the bench, staring at the ground, and saw her wipe at her cheeks, but felt too angry yet to sympathize. "So what was your excuse for leaving us?" she asked Irina directly and the older woman looked up.

"You," she answered simply with the first word Sydney and Vaughn had heard her speak since her arrival. Sydney just waited for an explanation and Irina stood up to begin her story. "When you were a baby, I had started teaching you to speak Russian. Jack knew my heritage, and he encouraged my desire to teach you." She stopped, giving a glance beside her at Jack and sighed, letting her eyes fall back on Sydney. "I didn't realize that it would only backfire on me. When you were six, you came into the kitchen and heard me talking on the phone to my handler. You said something to me in Russian before I noticed you were there, including my handler's name, and he heard you."

"Why don't I remember this?" Sydney argued. "I don't remember learning Russian as a child."

"You wouldn't," Jack cut in. "I asked the psychiatrist at the Agency that same question and she said that you were probably too traumatized after your mother's death. Your mind defensively blocked that part of your life out, believing that her death was your fault because of that phone conversation."

When Sydney understood and turned back to Irina for more, tears welled up in her mother's eyes as she remembered, "My orders were to kill you both immediately, but I couldn't do it. I told my handler that I would, but on my way home, I was already planning to tell Jack everything and get his help, when I realized I was being followed. My handler apparently didn't believe I would go through with it because he'd sent someone after me. I tried to outrun them, but I was chased, and my car skidded off the bridge. I hadn't planned that, but when the car started to fill with water, I knew that was my chance. I stayed under water for fifteen minutes, breathing air from the tires, until I knew I could escape unnoticed.

"I hid out for three months, watching you with your nanny from a distance, trying to strategize my next move and make sure you weren't hurt. Your nanny was also an agent, so I knew you were in good hands. And Jack was in prison," her face slightly cringed, "so he was somewhat safe as well. I realized that to someday get back to you, I would have to destroy my enemies first. So I started my own organization, and recruited only the best, working toward that goal." She solemnly shook her head. "I never knew that I would come up against you.

"I saw you for the first time on video surveillance, trying to obtain a piece of information that my organization was after as well. You got to it first. Before I even found out your name, I knew it was you." She smiled through her tears. "I was so proud. But by the time I could safely come back, you were gone."

Sydney had been quiet too long and she finally spoke through her own fresh set of tears. "Why should I believe any of this?"

Jack answered, "I heard this story first from her handler, just before he was executed."

"So what?" Sydney shrugged at her father. "They could've planned it all along."

"That's true, but she's also defected. And while she was in prison, I had the murder cases reopened, DNA testing was done, proving that she was innocent, and she was exonerated on all charges. Her handler was the guilty one."

Sydney looked back to meet her mother's eyes when she realized she now had the answer to the most important question she'd had since that last night on a plane with her father. "You…" Sydney started emotionally, and Vaughn tugged his hand free from the tight squeeze she had on it to wrap his arm around her back. "You didn't do it?"

"No," Irina shook her head. "I could've never killed those men--I knew it would keep me away from you forever."

Sydney drew in a shaky breath that sounded more like one long sniff as she quickly walked forward and wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. "Mom…" she cried on her shoulder, finally releasing all of the tension and anger and grief she'd harbored for so long. "I've missed you so much."

Jack reached around and rested his palms on both women's backs and Sydney let go with one arm to envelop him as well. The three stood like that with Vaughn looking on with a slight smile at the picture of the little family, and thinking about what she'd given up to be with him, he realized he couldn't have asked for a happier ending for Sydney.

"How long can you both stay?" Sydney asked calmly, even though she still hadn't loosened her death grip on her mother's hand as she sat sandwiched between her and Vaughn on the bench.

"A week," Jack reminded her, and she nodded.

"You can stay here. We have plenty of guestrooms." She looked to Vaughn for his approval, and he smiled at her, glad that she felt at home enough to make the offer for him. She turned back to her mother and father when she knew she was well within her boundaries. "Are you hungry? It's almost lunchtime," she rushed ahead without waiting for an answer to the last question as if she didn't need one.

"We're fine, Sydney," her mother smiled, and then reached up with her free hand to brush a strand of hair away from her face that had fallen from her bun on the top of her head. "You've grown up so beautifully," she spoke softly and Sydney blushed as she looked down.

Vaughn stood up beside her getting her attention. "I'm going to go tell Josephine to make up two guest rooms."

"One," Jack said quickly, and then Sydney was sure she saw his face flush as he met his daughter's eyes. "We…got remarried."

Sydney's smile grew with her intake of breath and she reached around to hug her mother's neck first and then stood to do the same to her father, never letting go of Irina's hand.

"Congratulations," Vaughn said with a smile as they parted, and turned with a nod. "I'll be inside if you need me, Syd."

She knew without asking that he was giving her the needed time alone with her parents as they reconnected, and that just overwhelmed her with love for him. "Michael," she stopped him from walking away. "I love you." It was a simple statement, but he knew she meant so much by it.

He cast a quick glance at her parents on either side of her and then smiled, knowing he'd better return the sentiment, no matter how inappropriate such public displays of affection were discouraged in his time. "I love you too," he smiled and then turned to leave the garden.

Irina waited until he was out of earshot to pull Sydney down to sit beside her once again. "He's perfect, Sydney."

Sydney couldn't stop the grin on her face. "Yeah, he is. For me, anyway." After a moment, she sighed. "We just told his mother about us this morning. She didn't seem too happy about it, but she accepted that I would soon be her future daughter-in-law."

"I'm sure you'll grow on her."

"Yeah. I guess we'll have a long engagement," she said wryly. "I just wish…" her words trailed off when she realized it might be an impossible dream to have her parents attend her wedding. "You couldn't come back in a year or two, could you?"

"No, Sydney," Jack answered. "It was really too much of a risk to come now, but I wanted you to know the truth about your mother."

She nodded in understanding and then said solemnly, "I just wish you could be here when Michael and I get married."

Jack laid a hand on her shoulder at the same time Irina squeezed her hand, saying, "We'll be here in spirit, honey." 


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

Jack snuck into the house a half an hour later, hoping to avoid the attention of the staff and Vaughn's mother, but fortunately found Vaughn alone just inside the foyer as soon as he opened the door. "Vaughn," he called out and watched him hurry over.

Vaughn gestured that he come in, and then sensing the older man's hesitation, he quelled his apprehensions with just one sentence, "My mother is not here."

Jack stepped inside then and followed Vaughn into the sitting room, saying, "I hope our surprise visit doesn't create problems…"

"It doesn't matter," Vaughn shook his head while Jack sat down on the sofa, and then he added a smile to further reassure him that it was okay. He loved Sydney enough to handle any problems or surprises he was sure that would come their way. "Would you like a drink?"

With his nod and his thanks, Vaughn went across the room and poured Jack and himself a glass from his family's collection of liquors, and turned to slowly walk back over to sit opposite him with both drinks in hand. "Are Sydney and her mother…?"

Jack nodded as he took his glass. "They're talking. I thought I'd give them some time."

Vaughn took a sip of his drink when he realized that he now had the opportunity to make something right, and setting the glass down on the table beside him, he started, "I'm…actually glad that you and I have a few minutes…to talk." He took a calming breath when he began to get nervous. "I realize that you convinced Sydney to come back so that she and I could marry, but…now that you're here, I would like the honor of asking you for her hand as I should."

Jack stared at the younger man for a long minute before letting a small smile play about his lips. He leaned forward slightly. "Thank you for asking," Jack said with obvious respect and then got right down to business. "Do you promise to take of my daughter for the rest of her life and love her as much as she deserves?"

He nodded immediately, "With every fiber of my being."

After a moment, Jack sat back again, amusedly. "Well, not that I have much choice in the matter, given the state of future events, but…" he paused dramatically and dropped his voice a notch, "even if I did, I would be honored to have you as a son-in-law." He smiled then, alleviating Vaughn's nervousness and extended his hand. And Vaughn shook it with a wide smile, just as Josephine stepped into the doorway and got their attention.

"Dinner will be served in fifteen minutes, Monsieur Vaughn," she said as the two men stood up.

"Thank you, Josephine," he answered her in French. "Set the table for two more guests as well, if you will."

"Yes, sir."

Once the servant left, Vaughn turned to Jack. "Shall we go find the women?"

Nodding, Jack followed Vaughn toward the back door and out to the garden, talking all the way about the property and houses in the surrounding areas. Vaughn felt easy around Sydney's father now, thankful that he had his respect, but he knew it was mostly because he had the love of Jack's daughter.

They found Sydney and Irina sitting on a grassy area in the secluded garden, talking quietly and laughing. Vaughn smiled when he saw the way Sydney's eyes lit up when she saw him and with a glance at Irina's, he noticed hers did the same at the sight of her husband.

Irina stood up and hugged Jack, while Sydney waited until Vaughn pulled her up by her hands. She lightly kissed him as soon as she was next to him, and then he announced, "'Lunch', as you call it, is ready." His eyes ran over what Irina was wearing and knew that she'd need to change to fit in with the period. "Your…clothes," he said hesitantly, but Sydney was a step ahead of him.

"We've already discussed the fact that she'll be borrowing something of mine while she's here." Then she added laughingly, "Especially a hat, considering that's the first thing your mother will notice."

He chuckled at his mother's obsession and then offered, "You can take her shopping," and that just made Sydney smile even more.

She leaned to kiss him again. "I knew there was a reason I fell in love with you."

He decided to keep the mood light as he turned back to her parents and teased, "Are you all prepared to face my mother?"

"Is she that bad?" Irina chuckled curiously.

Vaughn and Sydney shared a smile, but it was surprisingly Sydney that answered, "You'll get used to her. She's just a little overprotective of her son." She reached up to stroke Vaughn's cheek in emphasis.

Irina answered, "Well, that I can understand."

Sydney matched her mother's smile as the four of them walked together back to the house. Once they'd reached the back patio, Vaughn stopped the little group and turned to them. "Let me see if my mother is inside," he told the others, and they waited while he went in for a moment without them.

She was thankfully nowhere in sight, so that Sydney could sneak her mother upstairs to change, and while they were occupied, Vaughn led Jack into the dining room to pour drinks and wait for the meal to commence. The women came in a few minutes later, and the four of them sat down as the food was being served, and Vaughn was sure that his mother would not be back until dinner.

But just as Vaughn was taking his first bite, he heard footsteps and his mother's voice. "I apologize for being late…" she stopped in the doorway when she saw the others. "Oh, hello. I was unaware that we were expecting company."

Vaughn practically swallowed his bite without chewing to stand and explain, "Maman, I was trying to find you earlier. Miss Bristow's parents have dropped in for a visit." The woman's eyes danced from one member of the family to another as he introduced them. "This is Jack and Irina Bristow." He lightly gestured to Amélie, "And my mother Amélie Vaughn."

"How lovely to meet you," she said politely, and then finished her trek to the table to claim her seat.

Irina was the first to speak up, surprisingly in fluent French. "Thank you for having us, Madame Vaughn. You have a very lovely home."

Amélie's look softened just a touch and she even managed a slight smile. "Well, as Sydney's parents, you are welcome."

"We apologize for intruding," Jack added. "Sydney was not expecting us either. We came over to visit friends, and decided to stop by to see how she was doing."

The use of her native language by both of Sydney's parents impressed Amélie a great deal, but Vaughn could tell she had a dozen questions in mind. However, she surprisingly didn't start out with one. "I suppose you expected Sydney to still be at her friend's house. Perhaps you have not heard about her friend's family emergency?"

"Yes," Irina answered, not missing a beat. "She told us earlier. Such a tragedy."

Amélie's eyes narrowed slightly, almost as if she didn't expect the answer, but that didn't stop her from commenting, "Miss Bristow did not share with me what had happened, but no mind. We have enjoyed her company regardless."

Sydney's eyes lightened and she sat up a little straighter, hiding her smile by looking at her plate. 

"Has she told you the good news?" Amélie asked her parents and again Irina smiled, this time reaching out to rest her hand atop her daughter's.

"Yes. We are very happy for both her and Michel."

"You were not surprised?"

Irina glanced at Jack and Sydney before going on with the story they'd come up with. "We…knew of Sydney's feelings for your son, Madame. In fact, that was one of the main reasons for Sydney's visit to Paris."

Amélie silently sighed, finally getting the answer she'd been looking for. "You did not know he was engaged?" she directed her question at Sydney, who met her gaze.

"I knew," she spoke softly and dropped her eyes again. "But he told me that he was going to end things with Elizabeth before I came."

Vaughn's mother studied the group around the table for a long moment before picking up her fork again. "Then I suppose I was the only one who was without knowledge of your relationship before today."

"Maman--"

"It's alright, Michel," she held her hand up and interrupted. "There's nothing to be done about it now." Without hesitating, she turned back to the elder Bristows and asked, "So, do you still live in New York, Monsieur Bristow?"

Jack answered affirmatively, and then fielded the next few questions about their lives back home. They were all thankful that they'd discussed about this impending conversation ahead of time, and had come up with a plausible story to tell Amélie. And she continued to be polite and kind throughout the meal, much to Vaughn's surprise.

But as soon as they were done, and Vaughn suggested taking Sydney, Jack, and Irina for a horse ride over the grounds, Amélie stopped him and asked to speak to him privately first.

Sydney was fearful for him for a moment, but when he looked to her to go on ahead, she nodded in understanding. "We'll wait for you in the stables."

He gave her a slight, loving smile and she returned it, leading her parents outside and to the barn. Amélie led Vaughn into the sitting room and waited a moment to ask, "How long have you been planning this?"

Vaughn's eyebrows furrowed when he realized she thought he'd had a hand in her parents' arrival. "Maman, I did not know they were coming. Nor did Sydney."

"I find that hard to believe that Sydney's parents just happened to arrive the same day that you chose to tell me of your…secret engagement."

Vaughn sighed, knowing there was no way out of the impending argument, and decided to go with the full-out honesty, no matter what the consequences. "I wanted to tell you of my love for Sydney the first day she…arrived."

"Pardon me?"

"Maman, I tried for ten years to love Elizabeth for _your_ sake, to make _you_ happy. And without even trying, I fell in love with Sydney in less than a week." He let that sink in for a moment and then continued when his mother remained silent, "Sydney gave up everything in her life back home to be with me, so I'm glad that her parents arrived unexpectedly to spend some time with her. She deserves that much, no matter what their reasons are for coming today."

Amélie was silent, so Vaughn let that be his cue to leave and join the others.

Halfway through the night, Sydney was still wide awake, too happy and excited to rest, knowing that her parents were alive and together and sleeping right down the hall. She couldn't sleep, nor did she want to, for fear that they might disappear or she'd wake up and find it was a dream.

Unconsciously, she sighed in contentment and slid her hand up Vaughn's arm, pulling him tighter around her. He lifted his head from the comfortable spot with his nose in her hair and kissed her neck. "Can't sleep?" he whispered, and she smiled. He could just see her right dimple from his position behind her in the semi-darkness of her room.

She sighed again, letting the breath out slowly. "All of my life, I've dreamt of seeing my mom again, just to be able to tell her how much I loved her. And my dad…I've never seen him so happy. And they're _here_." She rolled over to her back and looked at Vaughn with that smile that was about to crack her face, while she ran her fingertips along his cheek. "Add to that, that I'm desperately in love with my wonderful fiancé, and I don't know what I could ask for that would make my life better."

He smiled and took her fingers from his face to kiss the tips, and then leaned in for a kiss on the lips. As soon as he released her, she continued stroking his face and sighed loudly, speaking her thoughts, "The only thing that could possibly make it better, is if they could be here to watch me become your wife, you know?"

Vaughn narrowed his eyes in thought and after a moment, he commented, "Maybe they can."

"No," she shook her head disappointedly. "We've already talked over all the possibilities. There's just no way that they can come back again--it's too risky."

"I wasn't talking about them coming back."

Sydney leaned up on her elbow and looked at him curiously. "Then…?"

"We could have the wedding before they leave."

She thought about what he was saying and shook her head, "That's…in a week."

Vaughn leaned over to kiss her when he knew she was beginning to understand. "Exactly."

# # # # # #


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

After a moment, Sydney sat up and shook her head. "I don't know, Vaughn. I don't think your mother's gonna go for that idea."

He sighed when he knew she was right. "No, she will not be agreeable at first, but I think we could convince her."

"How? By telling her that we're insane?" she retorted sarcastically. "Vaughn, in her eyes, we've only known each other a few days after meeting once last year. We already know that she's not entirely happy that we're in love, but if we tell her that we want to get married, _in a week_, she's going to freak."

He narrowed his eyes playfully, apparently unaffected by the serious tone in her voice. "I am not at all familiar with the phrase 'going to freak', but I believe I understand what you mean by it: that she will not take the news of our hasty marriage in a calm fashion."

"Exactly," she interjected, looking down at him still lying on his back on the bed.

He shook his head slightly on the pillow in disagreement. "She will understand. She will remember what it was like to be in love. Don't worry," he added with a caress to her cheek. "We'll convince her."

Sydney's anxiety lessened as she looked into Vaughn's caring, soft eyes, and let the love she saw there wash over her. Leaning down to kiss him, she pulled away just an inch and smiled softly. "If we can't…convince her, that's okay. I'm willing to wait as long as it takes to be with you. We already _know_ that _someday_ we'll be married, so _when_ doesn't really matter."

His hand found her face again and they shared a loving smile as he sighed. "I never knew I could love anyone as much as I love you."

Her smile widened. "Same here."

It was agreed that Vaughn would talk to his mother first alone so that Sydney wouldn't be caught in the middle of an argument, should one start. But because he had a previously arranged meeting that morning, and Amèlie was planning on spending the day with her best friend Catherine, the dreaded conversation would have to wait.

Sydney curiously tried to pry it out of Vaughn exactly what his meeting was about, but he wouldn't elicit even a single detail, claiming with a smile that he was working on their future together. His perfect answer was enough to make her wait for more information, and in response, she decided to take her parents into town to do some shopping for the day, and would catch up with him that evening at dinner.

Shopping with her parents was very relaxing for Sydney as long as she didn't allow her mind to wander to what Amélie's reaction would be to the news. She knew as well as anyone that marriages were not rushed in those days, unless a woman was found to be pregnant, but then when word got out about the pregnancy, the news was a disgrace to the family and the expectant mother would typically go into hiding until the birth of the baby. She knew Vaughn was going to use their love as his only reason for their marriage and the importance of Jack and Irina's presence for the timing. Sydney only hoped it would work.

At around lunchtime, Sydney, Jack, and Irina began seeking a place to eat when Sydney saw a beautiful hat in the window of a dress shop. Remembering Amélie's obsession with that particular accessory, she stopped and told her parents that she was going to purchase it for her future mother-in-law, hoping that it might help to soften her heart and accept her more openly.

Sydney was smiling with her purchase as she stepped out of the store with the boxed hat in hand, and was surprised when she saw Michael talking to her parents on the sidewalk. He wasn't alone, Sydney noted, eyeing the dark-haired man beside him as she wondered who he was.

Michael smiled up at her as soon as he saw her as she approached, and held out his hand for her. "Eric, this is…Jack and Irina Bristow's daughter, Miss Sydney Bristow. This is my childhood friend, Eric Turant."

Sydney's face brightened, finally meeting Vaughn's best friend that she'd heard him talk about—the man she knew Weiss was eventually named after—and she happily extended her gloved hand to greet him. As was the custom, he took it and lightly kissed the back of her hand, saying how delighted he was to meet her.

She thanked him and turned to Vaughn. "We were just getting ready to have…something to eat," she remembered not to call it "lunch". "Would you two care to join us?" she ended the offer with Eric.

"Oh, I am afraid I cannot," Eric said regretfully. "I was only out on an excursion for Annabelle's sake when I encountered Michel. She was craving some of Dominic's fresh bread for our noon meal, so I offered to get her some. She is expecting, you see, and she sometimes cannot control the desires of her appetite."

Sydney almost laughed, but managed to hold it in by taking Vaughn's arm. "I see. Well, I would love to meet her as well."

"Perhaps you could have dinner with us this evening?" Vaughn suggested and Eric nodded.

"I shall ask my wife," he added with smile and a nod before taking his leave. "Perhaps then we could discuss that other matter?" Eric added to Vaughn and Sydney looked to her secret fiancé wondering what it was all about.

But Vaughn wouldn't let any information slip as he answered his friend with an acknowledging nod and a smile as they parted ways, and Sydney had to douse her curiosity by telling herself that she would find out what it was about soon enough.

Once Eric was gone, Sydney smiled at her parents, faced Vaughn and asked, "Will you at least join us?"

"I would be delighted," he answered, kissing her hand in the same fashion as his best friend had before they began to walk down the street.

By the time the four of them had returned home, Eric's servant had arrived to give word that he and his wife would be able to join them for dinner, so Sydney looked forward to the meal, hoping that she and Annabelle would hit it off and become friends.

Her wish came true. Annabelle was an absolute delight. She was about six months pregnant and barely showing, but Sydney could tell that was probably due to her tiny figure. She was warm and welcoming and obviously very happy in her life as Eric's newlywed wife. They'd only been married about a year, and since then, she had been intent on getting Michael married off as well. She wasted no time asking about Elizabeth, and only because his mother was absent from the house did Vaughn answer truthfully that they'd gone their separate ways. Annabelle answered with a smile, adding, "She was not a good match for you anyway, Michel." She then quickly turned to Sydney asking, "Are you married, Miss Bristow?"

Sydney shook her head with a smile before bashfully turning her eyes to Vaughn beside her, wondering how to answer the silent questions in Annabelle's eyes, and she was thankful when Vaughn took control. Laying his hand atop Sydney's on the table, he confessed, "Actually, Annabelle, Sydney and I…"

He didn't need to finish the sentence because Annabelle was two steps ahead of him and her face lit up excitedly. She almost jumped out of her chair to round the table (which only caused all of the men to stand as well) just to hug Sydney and she exclaimed, "Oh, I am so happy, Miss Bristow—may I call you Sydney?" she pulled away to ask and Sydney nodded. She continued on with her praise, "I can tell already that you are much better suited for Michel, and he obviously loves you—I had sensed that the moment I saw you two together."

Eric laughed from across the table and gestured for her to return to her seat. "You are quite intuitive, my dear," he smiled as she obediently walked back around the table.

"Do not make fun of me," she mocked, holding her head high as she sat down, but Eric argued.

"I was merely admitting that I had no idea that there was anything between Michel and Miss Bristow…although I realize now that I must've been blind. Forgive me, Michel."

Vaughn waved it off, smiling at his friends and his beloved.

"Do you have a wedding date chosen?" Annabelle moved right on to the next subject.

Sydney looked between her parents, who had no idea of their idea to have the wedding before they left, to Vaughn, wondering if they should be truthful. But he looked just as perplexed. She finally shrugged slightly, thinking that it wouldn't hurt to be honest with their friends, and her parents as well, believing that their advice on the matter might be useful. Vaughn picked up on the hint and nodded once, speaking slowly. "We would like to get married before the Bristows have to return home next weekend." Jack and Irina silently stared. "But I have not yet spoken to Maman, and I highly doubt she will agree."

"Oh, how wonderful!" Annabelle cheered as Irina leaned toward Sydney to speak with her in English to keep the conversation somewhat private.

"Sydney," she said quietly to get her daughter's attention while Vaughn continued to speak with Eric and Annabelle, "you don't have to have the wedding while we're here. We're just happy seeing you happy."

"I know, Mom, but I _want_ you both here for the wedding. So does Michael."

"But at what price? I don't want you to start out your marriage with a bad relationship with Michael's mother."

"We haven't even asked her yet, Mom. She _might_ agree. And it can't hurt to ask. The worst she could say is no."

By the time their conversation was winding down, Annabelle was watching the two other women intently, but because she couldn't understand what they were saying, she merely had their body language to "listen" to. She noticed when Irina conceded with a slight nod before leaning back in her chair, and Annabelle's face brightened yet again. "So…there will soon be a wedding?"

Sydney just shrugged, "There will definitely be a wedding someday, but we hope it will be next weekend."

"Well, we will need to go shopping then," Annabelle exclaimed, and Sydney could tell that she was having a hard time refraining from clapping like a girl. "You would not mind, would you, Michel?"

He had to keep from laughing but didn't repress his smile, "No, of course not. But…our engagement is still a secret for now. At least until I have a chance to speak with Maman."

"We understand," Annabelle contained her enthusiasm and spoke for both of them. "We will keep it secret."

As Eric and Annabelle left that evening, Sydney had felt as though she'd easily made a friend for life. Annabelle's bubbly personality was a lot like Francie's, and it made her glad for the newfound friendship at the same time it made her miss her old best friend she'd known since grade school.

After they said goodnight to the other couple and closed the door, Sydney turned to her parents with thoughts of her old friend still on her mind and questioned, "I never did ask about Francie and Will… Do you have any idea how they were doing when you left?"

Jack slowly nodded. "They believe that you died in a small plane crash as does everyone else, but…at your memorial service, Francie mentioned that she hoped you were happier where you were now, so I doubt she truly believes it. And she keeps in touch by sending me a Christmas card each year. Last year, it was signed 'Will and Francie Tippin'."

"They got married," Sydney breathed happily with the revelation as she clung to Vaughn's arm, feeling tears filling up her eyes. She shared a smile with her fiancé before turning her attention back to her parents. "Could you tell them the truth about me now? I mean, are they in any real danger if it's discovered that I _didn't_ die?"

"Well…yes, I would think. Sloane was never captured—he was still on the CIA's Most-Wanted List, and if he ever found out that you were not really dead…they would be in danger."

She nodded in understanding. "Well…at least tell them…" she didn't really know where she was going with that sentence—she just wanted to communicate with her best friends somehow, but she knew it would be close to impossible without giving it away that she was still alive.

Jack finished her thought for her. "I'll assure them that you _are_ happier now. That you have found love and peace."

Closing the gap between them, Sydney hugged her father's neck, grateful that he understood and easily thought of a solution. "Thank you, Daddy."

"So," Sydney began as soon as Vaughn entered her room through the secret door and prepared to go to sleep, starting with removing his boots while sitting on the trunk at the foot of the bed. "Are you going to talk to your mother about the wedding tomorrow?"

He nodded as she climbed up to sit on the bed behind him. "After church, yes."

"Church?" she froze in her spot on her knees as he stopped what he was doing to look over his shoulder at her.

"Yes, of course. Everyone goes to Mass on Sundays. Don't you?"

"No," she shook her head. "I haven't gone to church since I was in boarding school."

He smiled, dropped his last boot, and turned completely, sitting on his knees on the trunk as he reached for her hands. "Well, this will be your chance to get to know more of the people in the community. They will love you."

"And what if they don't?" she questioned as he lifted himself to lay his body on top of hers on the bed.

Hovering above her face, he assured her, "They will love you as much as I do." She raised an eyebrow at that and he corrected himself with a smirk, "Well…_almost_ as much as I do." He then lowered his lips to hers and lovingly kissed her, but just for a moment before she gently pushed him away.

"I don't how comfortable I'll be sleeping with you the night before going to church."

His smirk deepened for a moment and then slowly faded when he realized she was serious and confessed, "Sydney, in God's eyes, we are married already…since the night you came back to me. A wedding is merely a formality—a sign to the public that we are man and wife."

"So…if your mother doesn't agree to the wedding…"

He answered exactly the way she'd hoped, "Nothing will change between us."

By the time the service was over, Sydney was certain that Mass in that community was just a formality and a reason for everyone to get dressed up and congregate once a week. It went by in a blur of standing and sitting and reading and repeating passages and Sydney followed Vaughn's lead and struggled to keep up. When they were through, Sydney felt almost as if she'd had a workout—the thought that those couple of hours each week was the people's exercise made her internally giggle.

As everyone piled out of the stylishly decorated church, and the people greeted the priest as they left, Sydney and Amèlie were stopped by Annabelle and Eric to chat. Annabelle kept her word and didn't even hint that she knew anything about Sydney's relationship with Michael, but merely asked if she would like to go shopping the next day. Vaughn saw his opportunity and excused himself, walking back into the empty church and disappearing beyond Sydney's line of sight.

He reemerged ten minutes later just as the Turants were saying their goodbyes and smiled at Sydney non-communicatively as he led her by the elbow to the curb and their awaiting coach with his mother already inside. Sydney implored him with her eyes to share what he had been up to in the church, but his mysterious smile remained on his silent lips all the way back to the mansion.

Once they'd arrived, before Amélie even entered the house, Vaughn got her attention. "Maman, I must speak to you." Sydney felt her heart starting to pound as she stopped ascending the stairs to watch and listen to the conversation. "I have…a particular question I'd like to ask you."

Amélie studied his face for a moment before answering with a terse nod. "I'll be in the sitting room," she told him softly and then entered the house, shutting the door behind her.

Sydney stared at Vaughn as his eyes left the door to find hers. "Are you ready for this?" she asked him carefully.

He nodded definitely. "I am."

They had taken a couple of steps up toward the front door so Vaughn could open it for her when she spoke again. "Whatever she says…I still love you for trying."

He turned and lovingly looked at her, and then reached out to cup her cheek. "Think positively," he smiled and leaned in to lightly kiss her, despite the consequences of possibly being seen by their coachman.

Sydney followed him into the house and watched as he went into the sitting room at the bottom of the stairs and greeted his mother. She wasn't going to listen in so she immediately made her way up the steps toward her bedroom, but she did overhear his opening line as she gradually moved out of earshot: "I have a request, Maman." He took a deep breath. "Sydney and I wish to marry…" 


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10:**

"How could you do this to me, Michel?"

Vaughn simply stared at his mother in shock and confusion that she would react the way she'd been for the last ten minutes since he'd approached her with his need for her consent. "'Do this' to you? I am simply asking for your approval of marriage."

"To a woman you hardly know," she added somewhat touchily.

"I am more acquainted with her than you are aware." He was glad she didn't know just how much. "The truth is, I met Sydney on a Sunday and by Wednesday I knew I would never love another as much as she."

"You…committed adultery?" she asked with a sideways glare.

"No, Maman," he shook his head, partly lying. He'd had plenty of lustful thoughts during that week spent with Sydney to warrant adultery committed against his fiancée at the time, although he'd never admit it except to his priest in the privacy of a confessional—something he knew he should probably do soon. But, currently, he had more important matters to work out. "I've told you… My relationship with Elizabeth has been long over. Breaking off our engagement was merely a formality."

"Then _why_ did you not say anything to _anyone_ before this week? And why must your relationship with Sydney be widely known in the form of such a hasty wedding? People will _talk_," she said the word disgustedly.

"People _always_ talk, Maman. Nothing we do can change that. But I want to marry Sydney while her parents can be here to witness it. She wishes for them to be present and to me I have the most important reason to agree to the timing: to please my love."

Amélie considered it for a moment before slightly shaking her head. "No. No, I cannot agree. It is too soon."

"You would not support our marriage?"

She shook her head again. "I cannot."

Vaughn sighed and looked to the floor as his fists clinched at his sides. "Then I suppose we will have no choice but to elope and live elsewhere until you would approve."

Amélie gasped, "You would not leave me!"

"Yes, Maman, I would," he answered evenly. "If that is what it will take to marry the woman I love."

She turned and paced the floor around the sofa, silently shaking her head and wringing her hands together. "I do not like this…what she has _done_ to you."

Vaughn took an irritated step forward and demanded, "What do you mean?"

"She has _changed_ you, Michel. You would not have left me before meeting her."

"I would not have left before because I had no _reason_ to, Maman. I have never known how powerful love could be until I met her. You must remember what that was like. You loved my father—"

"My marriage with your father was arranged, just as yours was with Elizabeth," she divulged and Vaughn took a step back in surprise.

"What? I thought…the two of you were in love when you married."

"We were," she nodded. "But that was beyond our control. The first moment we laid eyes on each other, we knew it was meant to be."

Her words encouraged him to take a couple of steps closer and implore, "That is how I feel about Sydney…"

"I still cannot accept her as family," she continued to shake her head. "We need more time to become better acquainted; if not for your sake, then for mine."

Looking to the floor again with a slight shake of his head, Vaughn's next words were soft. "As much as it pains me to say it, Maman, if you cannot accept her now…you _never_ will." Seeing that she was without an argument, he turned on his heel and left the room, heading for the front door. And he didn't see Sydney on the stairs with tears in her eyes and holding her breath to keep silent.

She hadn't intended on listening in, but after ten minutes had passed, Sydney simply wondered how Vaughn's conversation with his mother was going. She'd snuck down the stairs to listen in for just a moment, but found herself rooted to the spot, unable to walk away when she heard the heated argument. And the more she heard, the more she realized that Amélie might not ever accept her as a daughter-in-law. It made her wonder how her reaction fit into the scheme of her life with Vaughn—only she, Vaughn, and their son were in the painting that had proved to her that she would be Vaughn's wife…perhaps Amélie had passed on by then and was out of their lives?

Sydney considered the possibilities as she meandered through the gardens, enjoying the silence in order to try and sort things out in her mind. Her parents had gone for a horseride in the countryside, and she'd not seen Vaughn since he'd set off out of the front door. She'd checked everywhere for him at first, to see if they could talk and try to work out another possible solution, but when she reached the stables, she found that his horse was gone as well.

Bending over to smell her favorite rose bush, Sydney was surprised when she heard light footsteps approaching. Assuming it was Vaughn, she turned around with a smile, "I was wondering where you'd gone…" Her voice and her smile faded when she saw that it was Amélie and not her son.

Amélie stopped several feet away and clasped her hands in front of her. "I thought I might find you here."

Sydney was a little shocked. "Were you…looking for me?"

Nodding slightly as she took another couple of steps closer toward one of the few benches around the pond, Amélie confessed, "I thought we should talk."

Swallowing nervously as Amélie sat down and patted the seat beside her, Sydney made her way over and obediently sat down, waiting to hear what she had to say.

Amélie began very slowly. "I know you love my son."

She paused, waiting for a reply, so Sydney nodded, "Yes, I do. Very much."

"And he loves you too just as greatly."

Sydney just nodded again.

Amélie took a deep breath, "And I am sure you overheard that I disapprove of the idea of the two of you marrying so soon." When Sydney looked away, unwilling to admit that she had heard much of the conversation, Amélie divulged, "I merely saw you on the stairs as I was leaving. And that is all right—it was _your_ future as well that he was discussing with me."

She went on, "There is a good reason why I could not consent to your wedding…one that Michel doesn't even realize." She had Sydney's full attention. "It is embarrassing, but…the fact of the matter is that we are running out of money. My husband, although full of love for me and our son, was not very adept at handling our finances, and when he passed, he left an enormous amount of debt. Michel's marriage to Elizabeth was designed to solve the problem of our waning wealth. They were to inherit her sizeable dowry with their union, and it would have been enough to sustain our livelihood for many years to come. Now…" she shook her head resolutely, "we will be reduced to destitution within five years."

"And because I am not wealthy and bring nothing to the marriage, you cannot approve," Sydney clarified.

Amélie nodded. "You see—it is nothing personal. It is merely business."

Sydney turned to look at a lily pad floating on top of the water. "How can that be? Michel and I are…" she stopped herself before saying the word "destined" and reworded what she meant. "I can't live without him," she spoke suddenly in English, but Amélie shook her head, not understanding her. Sydney turned back to her and pretended to translate what she'd said into French while blinking back tears, "What can we do?" 

Amélie sighed as if she was getting to the most difficult part of the conversation. "I believe he needs more time. He needs to understand our situation completely, so that the two of us can find a solution before he drastically changes his life with a marriage to a woman with no dowry."

"The two of you," Sydney repeated dumbly, ignoring Amélie's slightly derogatory comment attached to that revelation. "And me…?" Without waiting for a verbal answer, Sydney was beginning to understand just what Amélie was requesting. "You want me to leave."

"Just for a time so that Michel's full attention can be on our situation and not on pleasing his newlywed wife," she persuaded.

Standing up to walk the short distance to the edge of the pond, Sydney didn't know how to answer, considering she didn't have anywhere to go if she _did_ decide that Amélie was right. She didn't think it was a possible solution, especially considering Vaughn wouldn't rest until he found her. Turning around when a thought struck her, she asked curiously, "You're not suggesting all of this only because of what the people here would think if Michel married a woman who was not Elizabeth so soon after their engagement, are you?"

"I will confess that is part of my reason, but even if I approved, it would not change the status of our finances." While Sydney was letting that absorb and trying desperately to think of another solution, Amélie stood up and addressed her one final time. "I believe this is the best course of action, Miss Bristow. And the sooner you leave us, the sooner Michel will be able to bring you back." She turned toward the house, adding, "I'll have Jean-Philippe bring the coach to the front of the house to take you wherever you need to go. I suggest you take advantage of Michel's absence to be swift with gathering your belongings. You will be greatly missed, Miss Bristow, and I only hope that the problems will be resolved soon so that you can return."

Sydney watched Amélie walk away in amazement to find a woman so devoted to her son that she would sacrifice his happiness as long as she believed it was for his own good. She wondered if that's what motherhood consisted of—always watching your child's back, making sure that he didn't make some tragic mistake in life that he'd regret. Thinking about their future, she speculated that considering how much she loved Michael, she knew she'd love their mutual son just as much as Amélie loved hers, and she'd probably be just as protective. Finally seeing Amélie's reasons, and realizing that they held a lot of merit, Sydney resolutely made her way to her room to pack her bags.

Vaughn's horse skidded to a stop at his command in the barn and he quickly dismounted, giving the reins to his stable hand and heading outside and toward the house. He noticed his future in-laws coming toward him on horseback and stopped when Jack said hello. "Where've you been?" Irina added.

"I was just…getting a few things in order," he answered vaguely, with a wide smile on his face. "I apologize for being so rude, but if you'll excuse me, I must speak with Sydney." They nodded in understanding as he rushed toward the house and entered through the front door.

Sydney was putting the last of her dresses in her bag when she heard the house clock chime four times. So when she heard a knock at the door, she knew it was her mother, who said that they would be back at four. "Come in, Mom," she called out lightly in English, snapping her bag shut as she ran through her planned speech in her head like she'd done over and over again in the hours she'd been packing. She knew her parents would have a problem with her leaving, but she knew she could convince them that it was the only way, and that it wouldn't change future events because she would still someday marry Vaughn.

She had her back to the door so she was surprised when she felt arms wrap around her waist and Vaughn pleasurably kissing her neck. "Hello, my love—" he started, but immediately noticing the bag on her bed, he pulled away slightly. "What are you doing?"

Sydney bit her lip and kept her back to him as she let out a nervous breath. Her stomach was queasy as she announced, "I'm leaving."

"What?" he demanded to know as he spun her around to face him. Her eyes immediately filled with tears but she still tried to avoid his gaze. "Have I made you unhappy?" he implored, holding her arms to look into her eyes.

"No," she said quickly, and then shook her head as she looked down to the floor. "No, you've been wonderful. But…we need some more time before we get married."

"My mother spoke to you, didn't she?" he knew immediately and the knowledge made him clench his jaw angrily. "If she told you that I didn't really love you, you know that's a lie—"

"That's not what it is," Sydney verbally stopped him and he dropped his hands from her arms. "There are other reasons that you just don't know yet. But you will as soon as I'm gone." She picked up her bag and attempted to walk around him to leave when he grabbed her arm. She stopped and looked at his hand on her and lifted her tearful eyes to his. "Vaughn…this is for the best. Let me go…please."

Vaughn remembered hearing those same last words from her lips twice in the short time they'd known each other, and each time, he'd obliged her request. But not this time, when their mutual happiness was at stake. "No," he said defiantly. "Not until I know what she said to you."

"Ask her—"

"I'm asking _you_." He waited as she realized that he wasn't going to back down. "Tell me."

His hand loosened its grip and slid down her arm to hold hers, and Sydney squeezed her eyes shut and sighed and then made her way to the bed to sit down on the edge beside him. She began to tell him all that Amélie had relayed to her earlier in the day, trying to recall every detail to keep from leaving anything out, and when she was through, she felt only a little ridiculous that she'd agreed that leaving him would be the best solution.

Vaughn remained silent through her whole explanation and asked if she'd told him everything. Sydney nodded and then he asked, "And you were going to leave so that my mother and I could work out our finances?" She nodded again and he furrowed his eyebrows. "Where would you have gone? How would you have supported yourself?"

She shrugged, "I don't know. I hadn't planned that far ahead yet."

"Sydney," he mildly chided, intertwining his fingers with hers to squeeze her hand, "a woman today must still rely on her family for financial support or otherwise she would have to resort to being a lowly seamstress or a maid or a prostitute in order to survive. We do not have independent women here like you did in your time. Leaving here would've been suicide." He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it, smiling slightly in relief. "I am so glad I caught you before you made that mistake."

He stood up then and pulled her to her feet, heading toward the door. "Where are we going?"

"We…" he answered dramatically, keeping the smile on his face and her hand in his, "are going to straighten this out with my mother once and for all."

# # # # # #


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11:**

Vaughn led Sydney downstairs by the hand and peeked into the sitting room at the bottom, found it empty, and continued on his search for his mother. Crossing the foyer to go into the dining room next, he saw her coming out of the kitchen, giving a last minute order to someone on the other side of the door. "Maman," he started when she'd quieted, and she spun around with a smile.

"Michel," she greeted, and then saw that he was not alone as he pulled Sydney from behind him to his side. "Miss…Bristow." Vaughn could tell that she was surprised to find that Sydney hadn't left as she'd hoped.

"I would like to know why you convinced Sydney to leave us," he got right to the point. "Is she no longer welcome?"

"Yes, of course she is, Michel."

"Then explain yourself."

She cast a wary glance at Sydney and suggested to her son, "Perhaps we should speak privately."

"No," he denied her request. "Apparently you mistook what I had to say the last time we spoke alone, so I wish for Sydney to be beside me when I make my point perfectly clear to make sure that there is no more misunderstanding." He let that sink in and then asked again, "Why did you convince Sydney to leave?"

Vaughn waited several painstaking minutes while Amélie considered what to say, and finally answered as she guiltily stared down at her hands. "There is something you don't know," she began slowly. "We have…some financial problems, Michel. I've meant to tell you about it, but I did not know how."

"I already know about the status of our finances, Maman," he interrupted and both women turned to stare at him incredulously. "I've known for over a year."

Amélie was speechless. "How…?"

"I became concerned when I noticed your spending habits had changed, so I went through Papa's desk and found the books. I knew you were too embarrassed to admit to me, so I have been working out a solution ever since on my own."

"You have?"

He nodded and explained, "In the last year, I have bought and sold three pieces of property in the area, collecting a substantial profit from them, and have managed to set aside a considerable-sized nest egg, if you will."

"Why did you not tell me?"

"Perhaps because subconsciously, part of my motivation was to become independent from Elizabeth and her promised dowry, so that I could break off the engagement." He paused. "But even when I knew that we could survive without her money, I found that for your sake, I could not end the relationship until I found a better reason." Looking to Sydney and lifting her hand to kiss the back of it, he smiled slightly. "Fortunately, _she_ found _me_."

The young couple shared a long, loving look before he pulled his eyes from hers and turned his attention back to his mother. "Now…" he began slowly, "is there any other motive for Sydney to leave? Or are you still trying to convince me not to marry her?"

"It was not only the money, Michel."

"Then what else is there? The people we call our friends? Are you so worried what they will think if I marry the woman I love? My affairs are not any of their concern—"

"It is exactly your 'affairs' that I am concerned with the people discussing. A bad reputation is difficult to overcome, Michel."

"Only if you give them cause to believe that you are _worthy_ of a bad reputation. I have no qualms about declaring my love for this woman to whole city of Paris, regardless of what they may think. To me, it is not that important. But, for your sake, since I made the decision to have the ceremony so soon, I have been planning a private service to be held this Saturday morning at the Turants' estate. Only the priest, the Bristows, and Eric and Annabelle will be present, and everyone involved has vowed to keep the secret. Then, as soon as the wedding is over, Sydney and I will be leaving. I think a two-month-long honeymoon should give you an acceptable amount of time to share the good news of our union with our neighbors."

"Michael," Sydney gasped beside him, completely awestruck. She continued speaking to him in English, "You've really planned all of that?"

He answered her softly, "Yes."

Amélie was shaking her head and interrupted their moment. "How will I explain your absence?"

"Tell them whatever you like, Maman," Vaughn answered in frustration. "I no longer care."

He started to turn to leave the room when Amélie stopped them, "Well, I do not think _I_ will be able to attend the ceremony, Michel."

"Because you still disapprove?" he asked and she nodded mutely. "Then you will be greatly missed," he answered defiantly, and took a step toward the door when Sydney, who was firmly rooted to the spot, stopped him with both hands on his arm.

"Michael, no," she shook her head and then switched to French so that Amélie could understand what she was arguing. "It would not be right if your mother was not there."

"But Sydney, she does not consent our marriage."

"Then maybe we should wait," she offered quietly and he stared at her in confusion. "I really would like for my parents to be present, but I want your mother there too. And if it's more important that we postpone it until later, my parents have already said that they understand."

Vaughn studied her face for a moment before lifting his hand to her cheek. "That would not upset you?" he asked softly.

"I'll be fine," she answered, nodding her head slightly but determinedly.

He impulsively pulled her into a hug and told her, "You are the most unselfish person I've ever known." Then he added in a desperate whisper, "I love you so much."

"I love you too," she smiled over his shoulder and tried to ignore the fact that she could see Amélie out of the corner of her eye, still in the room and watching and listening to them.

When they parted and stood holding hands once again, Vaughn turned to his mother to excuse themselves when there was a knock at the front door. Curiously, the three of them entered the foyer as Claude opened the door and allowed Elizabeth and her mother into the house.

"Catherine!" Amélie greeted, rushing over to shake her best friend's hand as Claude surreptitiously left the room as always. She greeted Elizabeth too and then asked, "What brings you both here?"

Catherine's smile was wide. "Elizabeth and I have decided to start hosting a weekly luncheon for all of the ladies in the area, and we wanted to formally invite you. It will be every Saturday."

"Ah," Amélie smiled. "I wouldn't miss it." She turned to look at Sydney. "Neither, I doubt, will Miss Bristow."

Catherine's face dropped as the conniving look on Elizabeth's set even deeper. "Oh…" Catherine tried to explain, "we had not…we did not…"

She couldn't seem to get the words out like she wanted, so Elizabeth decided to help by interrupting, "She is not invited."

Vaughn took a step forward in anger, but Sydney squeezed his hand and held him back, while he clinched his jaw to keep from saying anything. Amélie looked to her son and his fiancé and back to her friends and asked, "Why not? You said 'all' of the ladies in area…?"

Catherine swallowed a little nervously before explaining. "It is no secret that Miss Bristow is in fact the cause of Michel and Elizabeth's dissolved engagement. Everyone has seen them together in town and we all know that she is the one that Michel told Elizabeth about when he said he was in love with someone else the night of the party."

"Is that so?" Amélie rhetorically asked and then continued, "Well, you do not know all of the facts involved, but I suppose it would not matter even if you did." She cast a glance at her Vaughn and Sydney. "Thank you for the invitation to the luncheon, Catherine, but I will not be able to attend," Amélie announced politely. She then further surprised them all by adding, "I will be helping my son with his wedding this Saturday."

"Wedding?" Elizabeth blurted out in shock, as Sydney eagerly held her breath.

"The fact is he is engaged to Miss Bristow," she used her eyes to gesture to the couple behind her and to her right. "And her parents are leaving that evening and will be unable to return for quite some time, and she and Michel would like for them to be present for the ceremony. Otherwise, the service would not be so rushed, you see, until we had time to properly announce their engagement. But I am sure now that word will get around quickly."

She'd added that last part in a derogatory manner, and apparently Catherine picked up on it. "Very well," Catherine retorted politely, and Sydney could tell she was holding back her _real_ feelings. She and her daughter turned to leave through the front door as she tossed over her shoulder, "Good day, Amélie."

"Good day," she added sweetly, and closed the door behind them.

Sydney and Vaughn were both silent as Amélie turned back to face them, waiting to see who would speak first. Finally, Vaughn had to know, "Did you mean what you said?"

"I always mean what I say, Michel," she answered evenly.

"Then…you give us your consent to marry?" He was clearly hesitant to ask.

She nodded, "You were right." Taking a couple of steps toward them, she clarified, "Some things are more important than what people think. And I will not tolerate rudeness, even from the best of my friends." She paused and then added with a wide smile, "I hope the two of you will be very happy in your life together."

Sydney turned to Vaughn as each of their smiles turned into grins. She practically exploded with a joyous exclamation and jumped up into Vaughn's arms, who spun them both around once and stopped only to put her back on her feet to kiss her.

"Michel," Amélie quietly reproved him and they broke apart. "Stop that in public."

He practically laughed as he turned to her, keeping Sydney within the circle of his arms. "What public?"

"You know what I mean. It is not proper."

"Well, Maman, I have to disagree." He looked back at Sydney's smiling face. "I cannot go without showing Sydney just how much I love her, no matter where we are." Then as he pulled her closer by the waist, he added, "You will simply have to learn to live with it."

Sydney was lying with her cheek on Vaughn's chest that night, thinking about the fact that in less than a week, she would be his wife. It made her grin like an idiot, and wonder something at the same time. "When you planned the wedding and got everyone to keep it secret, did you talk to my parents too?"

"Mm, not until just before dinner tonight. I knew they would not tell anyone here, even if they had anyone to tell, and they would be leaving shortly afterward anyway."

She took in a quiet breath, and Vaughn understood that she was not looking forward to saying goodbye to her parents forever. Running his hand up under her hair, he soothed, "I'm sure they will miss you more than you will miss them."

"Not likely," she mildly argued. "I just got my mother back, and now I'm losing her _and_ my father for good."

Suddenly sitting up in defeat, she faced away from him as he softly rubbed her back. "Think of the positive, Sydney. They will be here to see us marry. Your father will be giving you away. And your mother…well, I'm sure she will not be able to sit through the ceremony with dry eyes."

She turned and gave him a weak smile. "Go on," she coaxed when she felt like he was helping her to feel better. 

"You have _me_," he grinned and she couldn't help but return it.

"Yeah," she said in a sudden tease, drawing the word out on a long breath.

He'd thought that would have been enough to assure her, so he had to think a little bit before adding, "And your parents are clearly still in love, so at least they will be together."

"Yeah," she repeated on a sigh, nodding and smiling again as she laid back down in her spot on his chest.

Vaughn was relieved that his reminders had helped her feel better and he let his hand reclaim its spot on her back, while Sydney's mind was still reeling with thoughts, especially when she considered their positioning in each other's arms. She asked, "Remember that night in the hotel when I told you about my relationship with my dad, and how my mom's death almost killed him?" She felt Vaughn's grunt of acknowledgement in his chest, so she continued, "I told you that I hoped I would someday find that kind of love."

He kissed her head and asked, "And have you?"

Lifting her head and propping her chin on her fist on his chest, she answered with a smile, "Yes. But, that's not what I was going to say."

He smiled back at her with her teasing and commented, "I'm listening."

"The truth is," she said nostalgically, "I already knew that I'd found it in you, but…it frightened me."

"It did?"

"Mm hmm," she nodded. She locked gazes with him and then admitted, "Because I thought for sure I couldn't have you, and I didn't want to accept that."

Placing his hand under her hair at the neck, he lifted her face to his and kissed her completely. "We're here together now, and that's all that should matter."

"And we're getting married in six days," she reminded him with a happy look, just an inch from his face.

"Yes, we are." He leaned up to kiss her again and had just tightened his arm around her waist to pull her completely on top of him when there was an unexpected knock at the door.

Sydney broke away in shock and turned her face to the door. "Who do you think that is?" she whispered desperately.

Vaughn shook his head. "I don't know," he said just as quietly. "But you must answer it."

She saw the seriousness in his eyes and nodded, quickly rolling off of him to get her robe. "Just a minute," she called out to her late-night guest, hoping it was her mother because she was sure she'd be the only one to understand why Vaughn was in her room and/or why it was taking her so long to answer the door. She pulled on her robe, thinking of the possibilities of the looming conversation with her mother if she happened to see him, and decided it would be best if Vaughn wasn't visible at all, just in case. "Hide," she told him quietly, tossing him his pants she found on her side of the bed on the floor.

Holding back a smirk, Vaughn rolled off the mattress and obediently pulled on his pants, as she kicked the rest of his clothes underneath the bed, while simultaneously straightening the covers. Then as she walked to the door, he stepped into the wardrobe, where Sydney knew he would be hiding until she could get rid of her visitor. She prepared herself and opened the door expectantly, and was surprised to find Amélie on the other side with a large, flat box in her hand. "Madame Vaughn?" Sydney immediately assumed that Amélie's visit had something to do with talking her out of marrying her son again. And her opening words confirmed it in Sydney's mind:

"I apologize for the late hour, but I wish to speak with you." Sydney's face paled slightly, fearing the worst, but Amélie rushed to assure her, "Do not fear; this is good news."

Relieved more than she realized she would be, but more curious than ever, Sydney glanced over her shoulder to make sure Vaughn was out of sight and then stepped back, opening the door wider so that her future mother-in-law could enter. "Come in," she said politely, and Amélie walked to the bed with an accepting smile and deposited the box on top of the duvet.

She turned to look at Sydney and begin her story, "When I was a girl, my mother told me of her wedding, and how much she loved my father. I am sure Michel has told you the story of his grandparents, and how my mother struggled to marry my father, just as you and Michel have fought to be together."

Sydney nodded as Amélie paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. "The night before she married, her mother – my grandmother – although she was originally very against her engagement to my father, presented her with this." Opening the box, and peeling away the paper it held, she saw a wedding dress – the same wedding dress that Sydney recognized from Vaughn's house in the future that was cased in glass. She knew it was the same dress Amélie herself had worn for her marriage to Michael's father.

"Oh, Amélie…" Sydney breathed unthinkingly, letting her fingertips brush over the silky white fabric.

"This dress has a great history, and has been worn by my grandmother, my mother, and me on our wedding days. And the marriages were blessed – not by the dress, of course, but I like to imagine that it brings with it a lifetime of happiness. Even though William and I were not married long before he died, it was _our_ lifetime together and I cherished every moment of it."

She looked down at the dress again and fingered the pearl edges on the high neckline. "I never had a daughter I could pass this on to, and after seeing the two of you together today, and your willingness to postpone your plans for my sake," she looked to Sydney, "I have decided that I would like for you to wear it when you marry my son this Saturday."

Sydney had faint tears in her eyes and was speechless because of Amélie's sudden change of heart, but she knew she could not refuse her request. She swallowed the lump in her throat and finally choked out the words, "I would be honored to wear it."

"Good," Amélie smiled. "Then I do not feel bad about sending Claude to search for it so late at night. He was quite put out."

Drying her eyes, Sydney giggled at Amélie's joke, and stood there awkwardly for just a moment before spontaneously wrapping her arms around Amélie's shoulders in a hug. Amélie hugged her back and requested in a whisper over her shoulder, "Take care of him."

"I will," Sydney promised, and then the two women broke apart, and Sydney found that the older woman was also wiping away traces of tears.

"Well," Amélie sighed, as if that part of business was taken care of. "I will leave you to get some rest, Miss Bristow."

"Sydney. Please call me Sydney."

"Sydney," she nodded. "I suppose you should be calling me Maman. After all, we will soon be family."

Sydney shared her smile and walked with her the rest of the way to the door. "Goodnight, Maman," she made it a point in saying and was relieved when Amélie smiled back.

"Goodnight, Sydney."

After closing the door behind her soon-to-be mother-in-law, Sydney slowly made her way back over to the bed to look at the dress once again. After a moment, Vaughn poked his head out of the wardrobe. "Is it safe to come out?"

"Yeah," she breathed, still mesmerized by what had just happened. Vaughn came over to stand behind her to look over her shoulder as she told him what had transpired. "It seems a little unreal – just last week, I was looking at this dress in that glass case… I had no idea that _I'd_ be wearing it. That I _did_ wear it."

"Well," he said, wrapping his arms around her and leaning over just enough to kiss her cheek. "Her asking you to wear this on Saturday just proves what I knew would happen if she spent any time with you." Sydney turned her face slightly to him, waiting for him to continue. "She has come to love you, just as I knew she would."

# # # # # #


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12:**

Sydney woke up the next morning to the sound of knocking, and it took her a couple of minutes to realize that someone was at the door. Amélie's voice came through a moment later, calling Sydney's name. "Are you awake?" she heard her ask, and Sydney came alive and started pushing a sleepy-headed Vaughn out of her bed to get him to hide or escape. But her pushing backfired when he landed on the floor with a thump, and Amélie called out again, asking if she was alright.

"I'm fine," she assured her, giving Vaughn an apologetic look as he struggled to his feet in fatigue. Then she placated Amélie by saying, "Just a moment."

She waited until Vaughn was back in the wardrobe again and her robe was securely wrapped around her before she opened the door and saw Amélie with another box in hand – this one clearly a hatbox. Sydney stared at her in confusion to see her there so early. "Good morning…Maman," she remembered to add. "Did you need something?"

"Yes," she nodded. "But first, have you seen Michel? He is not answering his door this morning. I hope he has not taken ill."

Sydney slightly panicked on the inside but managed to keep her cool. "I'm sure he's fine. He was very tired when we said goodnight last evening." She had to fight to keep the blush from her cheeks, thinking about the fact that he had been tired when they were finally ready to sleep, but knew that only she knew the real reason why.

"Hmm…" Amélie mumbled. "Perhaps he is just sleeping in, but I still think I will check on him next to be sure he is alright."

"Oh," the younger woman tried to come up with a good way of stalling her. "That's um…" she thought of offering to do it herself, but knew that would also be inappropriate in the eyes of his overprotective mother. "That's a good idea," she finished finally.

Amélie turned to the business at hand. "I have a present for you," she held out the box by its string handle. "I failed to remember to give it to you last night. It's to welcome you to the family."

She took it by the handle and blinked a few times. "Maman…" she breathed and then shook her head. "You've already given me the best gift by allowing me to marry your son on Saturday, wearing _your_ wedding dress…"

"Yes, but a woman can always use a new hat as well, Sydney." She couldn't hold back her smile.

Sydney suddenly remembered her own gift for her future mother-in-law, and quickly glanced around the room to make sure Vaughn was still out of sight. "I…I have one for you too. With all of the events of the weekend, I forgot as well." She set her hatbox on the bed and squatted down to slide her present she'd purchased the previous Saturday out from the space under it and turned to hand it to Amélie, who had followed her into the room. "Here," she smiled, and Amélie took it.

Amélie opened the box, holding back her excitement, and her eyes lit up when she saw the hat inside. "Peach – my favorite color… How did you know?"

Sydney shrugged. "A lucky guess, I suppose. I thought that it looked like something you would like."

"Thank you." Smiling again, the older woman gestured to Sydney's box, "Your turn."

She did as she was told by opening her own box and found a white hat trimmed with light blue ribbons and white lace, and the beauty of something she would've considered so odd in her former life still took her breath away. "Oh…" was all she could muster as she held it up to her eye-level to study it.

"I thought you could use it to wear on your honeymoon trip. It matches that blue dress you were wearing last week when Michel could not keep his eyes off of you."

Sydney felt the breath leave her lungs when she knew what day it was she'd worn that dress – the evening she'd met Elizabeth and agreed to go to the ball with Vaughn, and a full day before Amélie was allowed in on the little secret of their mutual love.

Amélie was smiling slightly as she recognized Sydney's speechlessness and laid a hand on her arm in reassurance. "I was not blind, and my son has never been very good at hiding his feelings."

Lowering the hat to set it on the bed, Sydney turned a bit until she was facing the older woman. "But…Maman," she started hesitantly. "That night… in the kitchen… Were you trying to keep me away from Michel even then when you spoke to me?"

Dropping her eyes for a moment, Vaughn's mother raised them again to look her square in the face. "Yes," she nodded. "With the financial problems I thought we had, I thought it would be easier to push you away as soon as possible. I was only looking out for my son." Then she smiled and reached up to brush Sydney's hair off of her left shoulder. "But I am glad everything worked out, because we are all better off this way. Michel would have been miserable if you'd left."

They shared a smile and Amélie took a breath. "Which reminds me…I should probably go and make sure he is alright." She turned for the door with her hatbox in hand. "He _never_ sleeps in _this_ late."

Sydney was a touch nervous, searching her brain for some way of stalling Amélie long enough to tell Vaughn to hurry to his room, but she came up empty. She followed her out of the room, still trying to come up with something, when she saw Vaughn's bedroom door open at the end of the hall and the man she loved step out in a fresh set of clothes. "Michel," she heard his mother chide as Sydney sighed in relief. "I was just coming to check on you. Are you feeling ill?"

"No, Maman," he shook his head. "I have been working. Were you looking for me?" Sydney recognized his question as a bold lie.

"Yes. I knocked earlier, but you did not answer."

"Oh, I do apologize. I must have been on my balcony or perhaps too wrapped up in my research to hear."

Amélie stood up straighter, but dropped her eyes to the floor, and that's when Vaughn took the opportunity to share a look with Sydney to set her mind at rest that everything was fine. "Oh…" Amélie answered. "All is well then, I see." Then she pulled an envelope from her waistband. "This came for you." She nodded and headed for the stairs, "I shall leave you to get back to your work. Don't miss breakfast."

"I'll be down in a few minutes."

He waited beside his door and Sydney leaned against the doorjamb of hers with her hands behind her back until they distantly heard the Bristows greet Amélie as she entered the dining room. Then he slowly made his way toward her. "Good morning, Sydney," he said politely, hiding his smirk.

"Yes, it was…until we almost got caught by your mother," she said quietly, trying to hold back a blushing smile by tilting her head back against the wood frame behind her to bring her face close to his. "I'll be glad when we won't have to hide anymore."

"This coming from the spy with all the secrets?" he teased, continuing to close the gap.

She reminded him, "I _left_ that life…and all the secrecy that went with it…to be in a peaceful one with you."

He took the final step forward and reached for her waist, resting his palms on her hips. "And you don't find all this sneaking around the least bit thrilling?"

Sydney tried, but she couldn't disagree on that point. It did get her heart pumping early in the morning. So instead she changed the subject. "Your mother gave me a hat for our honeymoon to welcome me to the family, and it made me wonder…" she slipped her hands up his arms to his shoulders. "Have you planned somewhere for us to go?"

"Yes, actually, I have."

Her eyes lifted in excitement. "Care to share?"

His smile widened, "Nope." Then he quickly released her and turned to walk away.

"'Nope'?" she parroted as she followed him a couple of steps down the hall. "Now you're keeping secrets from _me_?"

He stopped and turned to look into her eyes but kept the distance between them. "No," he grinned. "But I find that I do enjoy surprising you on occasion. Be expecting it more often in the future."

Blowing her a kiss at her mildly frustrated face and making her smile, he said, "I'll see you at breakfast," and strode to the stairs and went down them out of sight.

"How's the wedding planning going, Sydney?" Irina asked toward the beginning of the meal a half hour or so later, and Sydney set her fork down to answer, casting a glance at Vaughn first.

"Well…we're holding the ceremony at Eric and Annabelle's and I already have…my dress," she smiled across the table at her future mother-in-law. Then, when her mother asked, Sydney told her parents about the history of the dress and how special it was for Amélie to ask her to wear it. 

Vaughn put in his two cents, "And I've taken care of obtaining the services of a priest, and arranging the honeymoon trip," he said as he reached for Sydney's hand under the table, making her believe that he'd said that just to tease her.

She smirked but didn't miss a beat. "Not much else is planned. But Annabelle said that she would take me shopping, so I'm sure she'll have some good ideas."

"You should do that today," Vaughn suggested and Sydney brightened. "I'll have one of the servants go and ask Annabelle if she is free today."

"Thank you," Sydney nodded to the man beside her, and then laced her fingers through his, rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb as her heart swelled with love.

He continued with the topic at hand, "Eric is working on finding someone to play the music for the occasion…" Then he had a thought, "Do you know of anyone, Maman?"

She wiped her mouth with her napkin, signifying that she was finished with her meal and stood up from the table. "Not at this present time, Michel." Then stepped away from her chair and nodded to each person at the table. "Good day, everyone."

Vaughn waited until Sydney was gone shopping with an excited Annabelle and the Bristows were out for their daily horseride before approaching his mother with an idea for a surprise for Sydney and the wedding. After his mother had quickly left the dining room that morning while the rest of them were talking about the preparations for the wedding, it occurred to him that she hadn't been very talkative during the entire meal and conversation, and Vaughn wondered if she really did want their marriage after all, or if she was just doing whatever it took to make him happy. It bothered him a bit, so he'd spent a couple of hours actually working on the books in his room while allowing himself to think about it.

But every now and then, he'd think about what the next Saturday would be like as he and Sydney would become husband and wife, when an idea suddenly struck him, and he ran a hand through his hair, wishing he knew why he hadn't thought of it before. So, with his fresh scheme in his mind, he went in search of his mother for her input and found her in the garden, trimming the plants and bushes around the pond. 

"Michel," Amélie spoke lightly when she saw him. "I would have thought you would be spending the day with your fiancé."

"She is shopping with Annabelle for the wedding."

"Ah, yes," she nodded. "I'd forgotten. Was Eric able to find a musician?"

"Not that I know of," he shook his head.

"Well, I'm sure it will all work out before the weekend."

Vaughn smiled at her optimism before he spoke again to prepare her for his idea. "I wanted to thank you again," he changed the subject. "For accepting Sydney and our hasty wedding."

"Well, not that I had much choice, but…I am happy you are happy."

He nodded and spoke again. "In that case, I have one more request." Amélie stood up straight to listen with a bright red rose in hand. "I would like to move the wedding here…to the garden. I had planned to tell you about my love for Sydney in this place, but…it did not work out that way. And Eric and Annabelle have offered the use of their backyard, but it is small and not nearly as beautiful a setting as this one…"

She leaned over the bush she was working on again and snipped another small branch. "I believe Sydney will be pleased with your choice. She loves this garden."

"Then your answer is yes?"

"Of course, Michel." She stood up again and looked around, asking thoughtfully, "Do you have an idea as to where in the garden you would like for the ceremony to take place?"

He looked up immediately to the other end, just past the fountain. "Under the arches, I should think." He knew how much Sydney loved the secluded garden beyond that, but he wanted to save that place for just the two of them.

She led the way to the spot he was speaking of to check it out and began shaking her head. "There is not enough room here for the guests." She pointed to the potted plants lining both sides of the walkway, leaving just enough room for one person to get through.

"There will not be many," he reminded her.

"Still," she shook her head. "I'll have Claude and the others help me with clearing this area. What time of day will the event be held?"

Vaughn shrugged slightly and shook his head, realizing that they hadn't even thought that far yet. "Um…"

"Sunset, I believe would be the best time." She continued to plan, "Oh, and I could position some candles on stands near the 'altar' with some specially made flower arrangements… Is Father Charles performing the ceremony?" she asked and Vaughn nodded mutely. "I'll have to remember not to include gardenias in the bouquets – he's deathly allergic to those." She moved under the arches, pulling Michel with her. "You, Sydney, and the Father will stand here…the Bristows, the Turants, and myself here…" She went on and on, moving about and planning as if she were suddenly alive, and Vaughn finally saw his mistake for her standoffishness earlier as clear as a bell: he'd forgotten to let her help with the preparations as well.

He was smiling when she turned back to face him with a small pot of geraniums in her hand. "You know, I overheard Monique saying that Penelope was coming for a visit this week…I'll wager that she would be willing to play the violin to provide the music. You know how much she loves to perform."

Vaughn was taken aback as to how everything seemed to be falling into place with his mother in charge. "That would be lovely," he managed to mumble out.

"I'll ask her, but then they will have to be informed of the ceremony."

"That's fine," Vaughn assured her. "Luc and Monique are welcome to come as well if it is agreeable to them."

She smiled as she nodded and began to step past him. "I'll let them know. Now, if you'll excuse me, Michel, I must go fetch the servants. We have a lot of work to do before Saturday to prepare this garden."

# # # # # #


	14. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13:**

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday went by in a blur of shopping and planning and decisions for the little ceremony, and Sydney and Vaughn barely saw each other until after nightfall, when he would follow the ritual they'd become accustomed to and come to her room via the secret passageways so that they could be together. Then they would spend a couple of hours in intimacy before falling asleep in each other's arms.

It was on Tuesday night that Sydney had brought to Vaughn's attention the need for a maid or matron of honor, and how his mother had been trying to get her to decide. Sydney had wondered if Annabelle would agree to it, but Vaughn had sensed there was something she _wasn't_ saying. "You would like your mother beside you, wouldn't you?" he guessed.

She'd smiled shyly as she looked over her shoulder at him and asked curiously, "How did you know that?"

He just made a pleased face that he'd been right as he shrugged his free shoulder. "I'm sure your mother would be honored."

"But it's not traditional…" she'd mildly argued.

Vaughn had pulled her closer and pointed out, "Neither is marrying after knowing one another for a mere two weeks."

She'd giggled at that. "But…you don't think it would be odd? Your mother might think so."

"It's not her wedding."

Seeing his point, she took his advice and approached Amélie first thing Wednesday morning before breakfast, giving her the decision they'd made. "I know it probably goes against tradition," Sydney had tried to explain, "but Michel pointed out that we haven't exactly done _anything_ traditional where our relationship is considered."

Amélie had to agree with that but seemed surprised. "When were you and Michel able to discuss this? You were intent on having Annabelle as your matron of honor before retiring last evening."

"Oh, um," Sydney was caught and had to quickly think up something. "Well, we-we went for a late stroll through the garden last night to talk and unwind after the long day." She'd nodded with that lie, hoping to convince her a little better.

After a moment of studying Sydney's seemingly innocent face, Amélie had finally smiled. "I will wager that Irina will be pleased to stand beside you."

Sydney inwardly cheered that her lie had pacified Amélie (and that their two mothers were growing close enough for her to call her mother by her first name) but she still made it a point over the next couple of days not to mention that Vaughn had helped with any other decision she had to make.

By Thursday night, Sydney was nearly wiped out from all of the planning. After spending an entire meal at dinner trying to keep her eyes open, she'd reluctantly given in, excusing herself from the table to retire early. Vaughn seemed notably worried as he stood with her, believing that something was wrong. So he offered to walk with her to her door to say goodnight where he asked her if she was feeling well.

"I'm fine," she stopped in front of him and reached up to lovingly touch his face. "_Someone_ has been keeping me up late every night for the last couple of weeks, that's all," she grinned. "And added to all of the planning and decisions… I just need a nap."

He touched her cheek with the backs of his fingertips in worry. "You'll be alright?"

"Mm hmm… I should feel much better by about…ten o'clock?" She'd ended her statement with a questioning tone as an invitation and he chuckled.

Then he leaned in closer to whisper, "I'll see you then," before kissing her goodbye.

Several hours later, Sydney woke up when there was a knock on the door. She reacted automatically by sitting up and checking the other side of the bed to make sure Vaughn would get up to hide. But he wasn't there.

Curiously furrowing her eyes as she wondered where he was, she slowly got up from the bed and padded her bare feet across the floor to answer the door. She was surprised to find her fiancé on the other side with his hands behind his back and a smile on his face.

"Michael," she whispered. "You shouldn't be coming through my bedroom door."

His smile widened with her scolding. "I'm not. I…wish to take you somewhere."

"Where?"

His expression was unwavering as he pulled one hand from behind his back to reveal a deep-colored, long-stemmed, red rose. "It's a surprise."

"Oh," she stood up straighter, taking the flower with a grin, letting the door open a bit more. She inhaled the flower's scent for a moment before lifting her face to his, realizing that she believed that she simply could not be any more in love with him and yet he constantly proved her wrong. "Okay," she said easily, knowing that she'd never mistrust him and that whatever he had in store for her would be nothing short of wonderful.

"Get dressed and put on your shoes, and I'll meet you at the front door," he instructed. "And don't forget your wrap."

"Are we going outside?" she asked and he nodded. "What time is it?"

"It's after ten. Everyone's asleep, so remember to be quiet."

Just a bit more than five minutes later, Sydney emerged from her bedroom wearing the same thing she'd worn earlier in the evening – a simple, off-white dress with a low-cut bodice and long sleeves, and a matching off-white, full-length cape – and quietly descended the steps to meet him. 

He watched her in the dim light of the moon filtering in through the mansion's many windows and he couldn't help but smile, feeling happier with each step that brought her closer to him. As she approached, he was fixated in his spot thinking about how they would soon be man and wife, and she would be his forever. Before he could snap out of his daydreams, she was standing directly in front of him and smiling for all she was worth. "You seem deep in thought," she murmured with her lips close to his.

The right side of his face curved up as he reached for both of her hands at her sides. "Only about what you mean to me."

She completed the move to close the distance between them and lightly kissed him. "So…where are you taking me?" she asked, in another attempt to get him to divulge his surprise.

"Come on," he replied as he let go of one of her hands and turned toward the door. "I'll show you."

Just outside the front door, at the bottom of the main steps was Vaughn's private, open-topped carriage with one horse and driver – a very tired-looking Claude. Sydney gazed over at Vaughn curiously, but willingly allowed him to lead her down the steps and up into the waiting vehicle. Once settled on the seat, he picked up a blanket and unfolded it to drape it across their laps, and then leaned back, putting his arm around her. He gave the instruction to Claude, and then they were off.

Leaning back against her fiancé after they'd left the grounds of their mansion, Sydney sighed. "This could put me back to sleep," she smiled tiredly. "What gave you this idea?"

"It occurred to me that since you've come here, I have neglected to take you on a tour of the city at night. Paris could not be more beautiful than by the light of the moon."

She turned her face toward his shoulder, snuggling closer, thinking about the sightseeing they did together before their jump back to the past. Their romantic boat trip on the Seine was the predominant memory in her mind as she sighed out, "I remember."

He kissed the top of her head, sensing what she was thinking. "I will never forget."

She settled more against him, enjoying the view and the company, and the silence of the quiet city. Only the sounds of the horse's steps and Claude's soft whistle of a recognizable tune floated throughout the air around them.

That was, until they reached their destination.

Stopping just shy of the banks of the Seine, Claude turned toward Vaughn, telling them that they'd arrived. Sydney looked at Vaughn curiously. "Would you like to go for a walk along the river?" he offered.

His words were like a breath of fresh air. "That would be wonderful," she admitted on an exhale, and he proceeded to exit and offer his hand to her.

Vaughn spoke quietly with his manservant while Sydney waited before he turned back toward her with a grin. "Ready?"

She nodded, but as they fell into step beside one another, she just had to know, "What did you say to Claude?"

"I told him when and where to pick us up," he answered simply, gesturing to the concrete steps ahead of them that led to the water's edge.

Allowing her to go first, she waited at the bottom until they were side-by-side once more and took his arm as they walked, settling into the slow and steady pace in contentment. They had only gone about five hundred feet when Sydney saw a man stand up from the end of a long, gondola-style boat, making her wonder why he would be out at an hour that was considered very late by the standards of everyone in that era.

Merely furrowing her eyebrows, she didn't question it until Vaughn greeted the man by name. After a minute of conversation between the two men, Sydney knew that this had been planned all along, but she was just stunned and frozen in her spot until Vaughn held out his hand in order to get her into the boat. "Surprise," he said in English as his smile widened.

"_This_ is your surprise?" she pointed to the gondola and the man Vaughn had called "Jacques". "I thought it was just the carriage ride."

"Nope," Vaughn reverted back to the modern American slang he had picked up during her time.

His continuous smile and the light of love in his eyes was enough to make her weak in the knees, and she quickly stepped toward him and cupped his face to kiss him. "I love you," she whispered, overwhelmed by her own need to get the words out, as if they would relieve some of the bubbling pressure within her.

Given the time and place, and being under the gaze of a practical stranger, Sydney expected that when he brought his hands up to capture hers at his chin, it was to remind her of her inappropriate behavior in public. But he did no such thing.

Instead, he took both of her hands between his and clasped them together to kiss her fingertips, and smiled lovingly at her. "Let's go," he coerced, and then helped her into the boat.

As soon as they were underway, and Sydney was comfortably seated, leaning back against Vaughn in her usual spot with another blanket draped over both of them, she questioned softly, "Do you know him?" She kept her voice low and gestured toward their driver discreetly, even though Jacques was several feet behind them, driving the boat with a long pole.

"Yes," Vaughn replied quickly. "He's an old acquaintance from military school," he revealed and then added slyly, "And he does not speak any English."

She half-smiled; satisfied with his way of letting her know that they could talk freely. "I thought just happening upon him and this boat this late in the evening seemed a little convenient. You seem to be very good at planning your surprises." He chuckled a little, so she affirmed, "I'm serious – you keep me guessing. You'd make a great spy."

"Quite a compliment, coming from you. I've seen you work."

She scoffed just a bit. "Please," she waved one hand that had been resting on her lap. "It was just a _job_ for me… And I had to have months and months of training too."

Running his palm down her covered arm, he tilted his face forward and kissed her exposed neck. "Maybe in another life," he commented lightly, finishing up the subject.

Sydney smiled happily as she caught sight of one of the numerous bridges ahead getting closer. "Hey, remember that night we went on the cruise? What the guide told us?"

"About the sights?"

"No," she grinned surreptitiously, knowing only he would recollect what she was talking about. "About the superstition."

He chuckled, remembering how they'd kissed under each bridge. "Yes, I do recall that fondly. And I would love to recreate that night, but it would not be appropriate in front of Jacques." She dropped her eyes to her lap, so he reassured her by capturing her left hand to run his thumb over the ring on her finger. "Besides, we do not need as much luck as we did that night. We are already together and will be man and wife in two days," he reminded her.

"Yeah," she pulled his arms tighter around her waist and smiled again. "It's a little surreal." She wondered, "Are you nervous?"

"No, not really. You?"

She shook her head. "Not about the wedding – your mother has it planned perfectly."

"But you are still anxious about something?" he deduced.

Slowly shrugging one shoulder a bit, she confessed, "I don't want my parents to leave."

"Ah," he understood.

"We've spent more time together in the last week than we _ever_ have, and after Saturday, all of that will be over…for _life_."

"I'm sorry," he spoke softly. "I wish there was something I could do to change it for you…but at least you know now how much they love you."

Her eyes were watery just thinking about what the immediate future held, but she wouldn't allow herself to cry just yet. She had the next two days to get through before she knew she could understandably be a complete, blubbering mess.

"Take all of tomorrow and spend it with them," he suddenly suggested.

"But the wedding—"

"You said yourself that my mother seems to have it handled. Let her worry about the last, few details."

Sydney thought about that a moment. "You don't think that she'll mind?"

"No," he shook his head. "I'm sure she'll understand. And she'll have Annabelle to help her." He stroked the back of her hand when he saw her dimple in her right cheek appear for just a second. "And then we'll figure out a way to leave your parents messages," he thought out loud. "You could keep a journal and leave it to them in the future… That way they will get to experience everything you will go through with you. I know it would not be the same, but—"

"I _love_ that idea," she stopped him, and then sat up to turn to face him. She kept her eyes low as she slowly confessed, "Michael…I knew what I was sacrificing when I came back to be with you." Then she met his gaze. "I _know_ that being with you is worth it, and I will _always_ be happy with you...and I don't want you to think that I believe otherwise. I'm sorry if I complain too much—"

His fingertips were on her lips, preventing her from saying any more. "You are not complaining – you are merely confessing your sorrow. And even if you were, you could never 'complain too much' with me." He moved his hand to her chin, staring deeply into her eyes. "Never be afraid to say anything to me…okay?"

"I won't," she promised, and then added wistfully, "You will be all I'll have left."

He shook his head, "That's not why I said—"

"I know," she spoke apologetically. Then she shrugged again, with her eyes moist. "I guess I just don't want to have to face saying goodbye to them again. I've already done it once before with each of them."

"With one notable difference," he interjected and her face turned curious. "I wasn't with you when you said goodbye before. We'll be doing it together this time."

Hearing his comforting words, Sydney curled up against his shoulder once more and sniffed. "Thank you," she whispered as she blinked away her tears and they continued down the river.

An hour or so later, they got off of the boat at Vaughn's command and met Claude and the carriage to head back home, leaving their thanks with Jacques. Both of them were silent with fatigue as they made the trip back to the mansion, wrapped up in each other. Once arriving, they noticed the house was still eerily quiet as expected, so after saying goodnight to their servant and entering the house, the young couple moved silently up the stairs to Sydney's bedroom door.

She stopped outside her room and turned to face him, slightly biting her bottom lip. "Will I see you in a few minutes?" she asked in a suggestive whisper.

"Actually," he dropped his eyes. "I was thinking… I want our wedding night to be special as I'm sure you do—"

"Of course," she interrupted, even though she didn't really know where he was going with this.

"Would you mind if we waited…if we…slept apart until Saturday?"

"No," she said a little too acceptingly when she got his point. "That would be fine. That's a good idea."

Despite her good nature over the idea, he still sensed something was off. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she faked a smile. "I'll be fine."

Taking a step forward, he captured her jaw once more. "Sydney. Tell me what it is," he spoke softly, hoping she would be reminded of her promise in the boat to keep nothing from him.

She dropped her eyes and let out a breath when she knew he wouldn't let it go until she confessed what was troubling her. "I guess I…I just didn't want to be alone tonight."

Her need for his support elicited a small smile from him. "Would it help if I held you…until you went to sleep?"

Sydney seemed visibly relieved with his suggestion. "Yes," she replied as her eyes began to tear up again. "Thank you."

"Anything for you," he promised and accented it with a brief kiss. She was smiling as they parted, making him feel accomplished in his attempts to keep her happy. "I'll be in as soon as I can."

"Give me just a few minutes to change," she whispered, and he understood that she was trying to stick to their bargain of staying chaste for the next two days before their wedding night by undressing in private.

Running his palm down her shoulder and arm, he nodded gratefully and brought her hand to his lips in a gesture of saying goodnight for any possible watchful eyes and then allowed her to step inside her room. Then he was on his way to his room before he heard the sound of her door clicking closed.

She was already in bed, dressed in a nightgown when he came into the room, and he just kicked off his shoes and slipped between the sheets beside her. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he asked in a whisper, "Is this better?"

"Yeah," she murmured sleepily. "Th–"

"Don't thank me again," he lightly scolded. "This is what I'm here for, Sydney. And after one more night apart," Vaughn reminded her, "I'll be here for the rest of your life."

# # # # # #


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14:**

Sydney ran into Vaughn on the stairs the next morning, and met him with a smile. "Good morning," she said sweetly, missing him since she fell asleep in his arms after their romantic evening out.

He returned the smile and the greeting, but it wasn't enough, so he took a moment to pull her into a hug and kissed her as well. "I already told Maman that you would be spending the day with your parents."

"You did?" He nodded his answer to her question as he kept their hands together. Then she asked, "Was she okay with it?"

"Yes, she agreed that it was a fine suggestion, and mentioned that Annabelle had another idea for the ceremony that they needed to work on. She also said that you should not worry about anything, and that the two of them had everything under control."

Sydney was astonished. "I should go thank her."

"She has already left for the day."

That too was surprising, given the fact that Sydney hadn't slept in all _that_ much after their late night out. "And my parents?"

"They are at breakfast, waiting for you," he grinned.

She tilted her head at him. "And what are _you_ going to do today?"

"I will be preparing my office for our two-month long absence after tomorrow," he smirked. "There is a great deal of paperwork to be done."

Sydney took a step forward until his hands moved to just above her elbows. "So…if I need you…I will be able to find you in your room?" she spoke coyly.

He nodded, but said amusedly, "I believe you will be too preoccupied with your parents to even _think_ of me."

Reaching up to touch his freshly shaven cheek, she argued, "Impossible."

Vaughn kissed her for that comment and held her face close to his. "Have a good day, my love."

"You too," she returned, and kissed him once more before going their separate ways: her, down to the dining room; and him, upstairs to his work.

Sydney found her parents finishing up the last of their coffee, discussing the day ahead when she came into the room and said good morning. She kissed each of their cheeks before claiming her seat, and asked what they had planned for the day.

"Oh, not much," Irina replied, looking to her husband.

"Good," Sydney smiled. "Michael managed to convince his mother that she and Annabelle can plan the rest of the wedding so that the three of us can spend what time we have left together."

"That's wonderful, sweetheart," Jack actually smiled. "What did you have in mind?"

"I don't know. I thought we could mainly stay around here…maybe, go riding or walking, and just…talk…?" She ended the sentence hesitantly.

Irina spoke up for both of them. "I like that idea. Let us go change into something more casual while you eat," she said, wiping her mouth with her napkin, "and then we'll walk some of this delicious breakfast off first."

Sydney chuckled, "Good idea."

Jack stood up with his wife and pushed in his chair as well. "We'll be back in a little while," he said, and then the two of them left the room.

Vaughn passed by his future in-laws on the stairs, but didn't stop them as they nodded to one another and he continued down toward the dining room. He looked at Sydney quizzically and asked, "Did they not like the idea?" gesturing over his shoulder to the foyer.

"Yes, they did. They're just changing clothes while I eat," she pointed to her full plate that had just been set in front of her.

He raised one eyebrow as he moved to claim the seat her father had vacated beside her, but she didn't miss his smirk.

"What?"

Because they were alone, he admitted, "I was just wondering how long it would take a newlywed couple to change in the same room."

"Eww," she grimaced but still smiled. "Mental picture, please! These are my _parents_ you're talking about here!" she finished in a revolted yet playful whisper.

He laughed, "Sorry. But it still makes me wonder…for _our_ sake."

She leaned toward him and grabbed his hand under the table. "Well…because I already know you in that way…I have an idea, but…I'm happy to know that we'll find out for sure after tomorrow."

Vaughn completed to close the distance between them and lightly kissed her, "And tomorrow," he accented with another kiss, "and tomorrow," and another, "and tomorrow," once more.

Sydney was grinning, dimples in full-bloom when they finally parted, and she was totally focused on him. Thinking about what he'd told her of his day ahead, it made her curious, "What are you doing down here anyway? I thought I wouldn't see you for the rest of the day."

"Well, I came down for more coffee – the pile of paperwork was leering at me, making me nervous." She chortled at his description. "But then I discovered that I would get to have the great privilege of keeping you company while you eat."

She took a bite of her food and pointed out, "You're procrastinating."

"You've noticed?" he teased. Then he softly touched her cheek. "At least I've found a good reason."

He watched her eat the rest of her food in record time, and started chuckling. "You are eating very fast this morning."

"Well," she started to talk around her food and then thought better of it, finished chewing, and swallowed to finish her sentence. "I don't want to be the one to blame for holding you up. You have to get to work." She took the last bite and wiped her mouth, setting her napkin on the table. "There. Now you can go."

"You are very persistent," he pursed his mouth, teasing her.

She pressed her lips to his for a brief moment. "I just don't want anything to get in the way of this surprise honeymoon you have planned. Where was it you were taking me again?"

He gave her a look and touched the tip of her nose. "Nice try, but it won't work. You will simply have to wait to see."

Standing up, knowing that he would as well, she remained in front of him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Well, then…you'd better go get your coffee and get to work, so that you can take me there."

He wrapped his arms around her as well, saying, "Slave driver."

"Procrastinator."

"Lover."

She felt her face immediately heat up and kept her voice as low as his, "Not fair, using such an intimate term."

"It's true," he whispered with a smile. "After tomorrow, especially."

Stepping back out of his arms, she let out an eager breath. "You'd better go…before I decide to forget our agreement and drag you upstairs."

"Hmm…" he muttered, holding both of her hands to keep her from getting away.

"What?"

"I'm just wondering how I should proceed."

She laughed, but physically turned him to push him toward the kitchen. "Go."

He obediently walked a few feet away and stopped, turning back to face her. "I love you, Sydney."

She grinned and walked toward him, wrapping her arms around his neck. And after spending a few moments kissing, she confessed, "I love you too…lover," she added teasingly, and his reply was to smile back and kiss her again. 

They were tasting and caressing each other so completely that they didn't notice that her parents had again entered the room until her father cleared his throat. Vaughn reacted automatically by stepping protectively in front of Sydney, only to relax when he saw Irina's disarming smile.

"Practicing for tomorrow?" she asked boldly and smiled wider when Vaughn blushed and looked to the tile floor between them.

"That looked a bit too personal for a kiss to end a wedding ceremony," Jack noted, still eyeing Vaughn warily.

"Dad," Sydney chided as she moved out from behind her fiancé. "Let it go."

Knowing that she was only following her heart and the destiny set before her, he allowed himself to relax by letting his shoulders lower and his narrow eyes widen a little. Then Sydney turned to the man she loved. "I'll see you later. Get a lot of work done for me, okay?"

"I will," he vowed as they kissed one last time and they parted ways again.

"Where should we walk?" Sydney asked a few minutes later as she and her parents stepped outside the front door. "Should we see how far it is to the neighbors'?"

Irina nodded, but informed her, "We went to the north on horseback the other day… It's quite far."

"Probably fifteen miles," Jack added, and his wife nodded again in agreement.

"Well, let's go to the south then, and we'll see how far we get," Sydney suggested, and the three of them started out toward the gate.

They'd only walked about three miles when Irina saw something beyond a large field that caught her attention. "Jack, what is that?" she pointed through a wooded area at the opposite edge of the field.

"I don't know. We could check it out." He looked to Sydney and noticed she too was game before heading down the hill from the road toward the patch of trees with the women in tow.

When he reached out behind him to steady his wife, Sydney couldn't stop a smile from creeping across her face as she realized just how much her parents really loved each other. That gave her some peace, even with the knowledge that they would not be with her much longer. And she knew she would cling to that for the rest of her life.

As they neared what they'd seen, they discovered that it was a small cottage – or a rather large house by the twenty-first century's standards – that was apparently abandoned. Overgrown, untamed bushes practically covered the windows, and a creeping vine wandered up the entire front of the building, making it look like the color of the grey stone walls were really painted green. Upon further inspection around the side of the house, Jack noticed that the roof was caving in on the back corner and the rear entrance into the kitchen was wide open, its door hanging on the one remaining hinge that hadn't rusted away.

Jack was the first to venture inside to look around, but his girls were not too far behind. "How sad," his wife commented when she saw the disarray of the house; dishes and furniture, clothes and even a few wooden toys were scattered everywhere. "It looks like whoever lived here just left without taking anything with them."

"It doesn't look like they had much choice," Jack pointed out the collapsed fireplace as soon as he saw it in the living room in middle of the home with the gaping hole in the roof above their heads. He added, "Especially if this happened during the winter."

"They would've frozen to death," Sydney said the obvious out loud. 

Irina crossed her arms. "It's a shame. I'll bet it was a lovely home."

They were all quiet as they left the property, until it occurred to Irina to ask where Sydney and Michael would be living upon their return from their honeymoon.

"We'll be staying in his parents' mansion." Then she corrected, "At least, because we _know_ that the house was left to Michael and his descendants, we _assume_ that we'll be living there with his mother until long after she's gone."

Jack nodded in agreement. "Houses were usually given from father to son in this generation, so I don't doubt your assumption to be true."

Sydney kept walking and keeping up the pace with them, but noticed that her mother was quiet with an odd look on her face. "What is it, Mom? What are you thinking about?"

She shrugged. "Your…descendants. I hadn't thought about the fact that someday, we would have grandchildren… Nor that we will never get to see them."

Tears burned Sydney's eyes at the same time she felt choked by a lump in her throat, and she stared down at the grass below her feet with each step. Her thoughts of the impending doom of watching her parents leave for good were interrupted by her mother's soothing voice, changing the subject slightly. "Have you and Michael discussed children?"

She had to swallow in order to answer, "No, not really. But…we know that Eric Weiss is our great-great-grandchild, so we know that having kids is undoubtedly in our future."

"Does that frighten you? Having a child?"

Sydney shook her head automatically, and then shrugged one shoulder very slowly. "Maybe a little. I don't really know what to do, or…how to be a mom."

Irina touched her daughter's arm. "You'll have Amélie to help you."

"I know," Sydney nodded and attempted a smile, just as they reached the road again and decided it was a good chance to change the subject to keep from crying. "Should we head back? We could have a small lunch before going for a ride."

"Sounds good to me," Jack agreed, and took Irina's arm as they fell into step to walk back down the road.

Vaughn actually ventured down to the dining room while the three of them were eating lunch, and Sydney's face automatically lit up when he came in. "Hey, how's the paperwork?"

"Unending," he said lightly as he walked over to kiss her. "How was your walk?"

"Very nice," she smiled as his lips brushed her cheek. "We found an abandoned house that brought out the curiosity in all of us."

"Where?"

"About three miles to the south; on the right side of the road at the bottom of a hill. It was hidden from view—"

"By a patch of trees?" Vaughn finished her sentence and she nodded.

Irina asked, "You know of it?" 

"Yes. There was a terrible storm several winters ago that drove the owners out of the house. The last I heard was that they had to move in with some relatives in England."

"Who owns the house now?" Jack wondered.

"I believe the family still does, but I do not think they have the money for the repairs. And so it sits. I've thought of buying it myself, but I cannot decide if I want to take on such a large task or not."

Sydney craned her neck to look at him in the spot he'd migrated to as they'd talked, right behind her chair. "You've thought of buying it?" 

He nodded and crossed his eyebrows, wondering why she was so interested.

"I just thought it was a cute house," she shrugged away his questions for the time being. She could tell him what she was thinking later, when they were again alone.

Vaughn ended up taking his lunch upstairs, using the excuse that he had more work to do than the time he had allotted to do it, especially if he had any desire to spend a few minutes alone with Sydney before the chaos of their wedding day commenced. Sydney and her parents went on their horseride through the back pastures of the property, traveling east until dusk, when they took notice of the gorgeous sunset behind them and decided to head back to give it its due attention. They ended back up at the garden just before it was completely dark where they dismounted and tied their horses to one of the many trees. Then they headed into the beautiful area around the pond to see if everything was prepared for the ceremony the next day.

Approaching the arches as one of the servants meandered his way around the pond, lighting each one of the numerous lanterns along the high wall that surrounded them, Sydney noted that the space recently vacated of plants to make room for the wedding party had been scrubbed clean. New flower arrangements adorned the arches and the poles of several free-standing candleholders that stood on either side of the invisible altar, and new candles sat atop the stands, ready to be lit.

Sydney was in awe as she took it all in and she felt her mother rub the middle of her back. "It's going to be beautiful, sweetheart."

"It is, isn't it?" Sydney said dreamily, as the servant silently slipped from the garden to go about his other chores. "Less than twenty-four hours from now, I'll be getting married."

Irina completed wrapping her arm around her daughter and hugged her from the side, touching their heads together. "You're going to be so happy; I know it."

Jack was standing back watching the entire touching mother and daughter bonding and felt the need to make himself scarce. "Is Vaughn still in his room?"

Turning slightly toward her father's voice, Sydney nodded. "Unless by some miracle he got his paperwork caught up and finished before tomorrow. Do you need him for something?"

"I just want to have a talk with him before the wedding. Now seems as good a time as any."

"Dad," she warned. "Go easy on him. I love him, you know. And he has to take care of me all by himself for the rest of my life."

He smiled and walked over to kiss her on the forehead before leaving her in her mother's care. "I promise I'll play nice."

# # # # # #


	16. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15:**

Sydney was watching her father go, wondering what it was he had to tell Vaughn before becoming her husband… Or was it something he wanted to tell him before their leap back to the future that he didn't think they'd find another moment alone to talk as man-to-man except now? It made her curious to know, and something else she'd have to ask when she got him alone that evening before they went to sleep for the night.

"He really loves you," Irina said, getting Sydney's attention again.

The younger woman smiled gratefully. "I know. And I know he'll take good care of me, so you and Dad don't have anything to worry about."

Irina was tilting her head at her response. "I was talking about your father."

"Oh," Sydney mouthed, and then took a step toward the bench to sit down. "I know," she admitted, lowering herself to the decorative, stone slab seat. "I didn't think he did for a long time, but since I learned why he shut me out all of those years...I understand why it was hard for him to show it." She turned to look at her mother as she sat down beside her. "_You_ were a huge part of the reason."

"I was," Irina replied solemnly. "I didn't think Jack would ever forgive me for what I put him through…but I am extremely grateful that he did."

"You never told me…" Sydney asked curiously. "How _did_ you two get back together?"

She started slowly, but gradually she explained that after she turned herself in to the CIA and the truth about her life started coming to the surface, Jack was eventually the one asking the questions. Over time, they got to know each other again, without all of the lies; although Jack didn't believe much of her story for a long time, until little by little was confirmed. "The day the charges were dropped, and I was released," she smiled nostalgically, "your father was the one that welcomed me. And when he smiled at me for the first time in that moment, I knew that he believed me, and that he still loved me. We were remarried about a year later."

"So, you've been married…?"

"A little over a year," Irina answered her daughter's implied question. "The night he proposed – _after_ I'd said yes…he told me that you were alive. And then promised me that he would do whatever it would take to bring me back here to see you. He loved me _that_ much…and you too."

Sydney revealed her dimples as she genuinely smiled, replaying the week she'd been able to spend with her parents, feeling their care and concern for her happiness; remembering the looks she'd seen them give each other since their arrival, and the tender moments they'd shared when they thought they were alone. It had made her heart swell, knowing that they were together again, they were blissfully in love with each other, and that Sydney too was cherished. She knew they would _always_ love and miss her, probably almost as much as she'd miss them.

Before she realized it, her smile had faded and had been replaced with a frown as her face contorted, trying to keep from crying again. "Mom," she said, in an effort to push back the tears. Irina saw her inner battle and wrapped her arm around her daughter's shoulders, encouraging her to go on. "I…_can't_ say goodbye to you and Dad again."

Irina's eyes were also moist as she folded Sydney into her arms, and the two women held each other to share their sorrow and their tears.

Vaughn was nearing the end of his work; he could _feel_ it. There were just so many things to deal with the houses he'd acquired: mortgages and rents, repairs and impending sales…not to mention the bookkeeping that went with all of it. Added to the fact that he would not be around for the next eight weeks to keep it in order, he knew he would be twice as swamped when they returned home.

But thinking about Sydney as his wife, and the long, special honeymoon he had planned, he smiled knowing it would be _well_ worth all of the extra work.

There was a knock at the door just when he was thinking about getting up to stretch – an excuse to find Sydney – and he walked to the door with a grin, certain that it was her. But it was Jack on the other side.

"Mr. Bristow," Vaughn mumbled in mild shock. "Do you need anything?"

Jack was insistent, "I wanted to talk with you…before the chaos of getting ready for the wedding began." He paused and lowered his voice. "Actually, I just wanted to have some time to chat before Irina and I go back, and because we probably won't have much time before or after the ceremony, I thought now would be better."

"Of course," Vaughn nodded. "Come in. Do sit down." He gestured to the two chairs near the fireplace. Vaughn followed Jack into the room after shutting the door, asking about the whereabouts of the women.

"They're in the garden…talking."

"Is everything alright?"

Jack nodded as he lowered himself into one of the chairs. "As well as it _can_ be. I told them I needed to speak with you so that they could have some more time alone. I don't think Sydney is handling our leaving as well as she pretends to."

Vaughn dropped his eyes to the floor in concurrence as he sat down in the opposite chair. "I have to agree with you on that." He shook his head, thinking about how fragile she seemed the night before. "She tries to be strong, but at night, she weakens."

"At night?" Jack raised an eyebrow as he tilted his head at his future son-in-law.

For the first time since being with her intimately, he didn't deny it, and he looked dead in the older man's eyes as he admitted, "Yes. Last night especially…she did not wish to be alone."

"So you stayed _with_ her?"

Not allowing himself to waver, Vaughn was glad that what he was about to say was the truth, although it wouldn't have been just a day earlier, "Yes…until she fell asleep."

Jack softened just a bit as he continued to read Vaughn's face for deceit and could find none, and felt a bit stunned that the younger man had the confidence to be honest. But that little reveal had also earned Vaughn some well-deserved respect as another grown man in Jack's eyes.

Thinking back to the subject at hand, Jack's gaze fell to the floor. "She was the same way when she was a child. There were many nights that she would wake up with nightmares and…"

When his voice trailed off, Vaughn half-smiled, thinking of the woman he loved as a child, and finished his sentence, "Climb into your bed with you?" But surprisingly, he just shook his head.

"No," Jack said somberly. "She went to her nanny instead." Vaughn's eyes narrowed slightly in confusion, so Jack explained, "I think she...was afraid of me. I was…cold, distant… I didn't know how to be her father after Irina…left…when she was a child."

Vaughn bobbed his head, remembering the few things Sydney had said about her rocky relationship with her father. "That's right. She mentioned that the two of you were not very close as she was growing up."

"Which is most of the reason why it's so difficult leaving her again tomorrow," Jack went on. "I am no longer that man that shut down with my grief and anger and bitterness. If I had known that I would be losing her for good at such a young age, I would not have wasted all those years with her. I don't really know how her mother and I will cope without her now."

Sitting up slightly, Vaughn assured him, "She feels the same way about losing the two of you. And I wish there were some way of…_changing_ it…" he said emotionally, "but I promise you that I _will_ take care of her and do my best to make sure she is happy here."

"I don't doubt that you will," Jack's small smile appeared and then he fell silent for just a moment. "That's part of the reason I came to you… I have a request." Vaughn perked up but he remained quiet for Jack to go on.

He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees and put his clasped fists on his mouth for just a second, as if to gain strength for his appeal. Then he lowered his hands with his eyes. "There will be times…in the course of your marriage, that Sydney will become emotional. She will question her decision to come here to stay and whether or not the people she cared about in her old life really loved her. I need you to promise me that you will reassure her in every way that you possibly can that she is loved by all."

"Of course," Vaughn interjected, but Jack only paused for a moment.

"Her absence from our lives will be _magnanimous_ – she _has_ to understand that we will not be the same without her, but that we're proud of her for following her destiny and her heart. And because we will not be here for her, _you_ will have the vital task of being her family, her support, and her confidant. You _cannot_ back down from this assignment. Do you understand me?"

"Yes," Vaughn spit out, suddenly feeling the weight of his responsibilities. 

Jack had one more demand, "And you cannot divorce her and leave her…_ever_."

"I wouldn't."

Nodding thankfully, Jack leaned back again. "You do understand that if I find out that she died alone and unhappy, I _will_ find a way to come back again, just to kill you."

His face was dead serious and Vaughn knew he meant business. "Yes, sir."

"I _mean_ that, and don't you ever forget it."

After a tense nod and several moments as Vaughn tried to figure out how to proceed with a normal conversation, Jack unnervingly smiled. "That's it," he said evenly, and all dark traces of threats were gone. "That's my 'welcome to the family' speech."

Letting out a breath he was unconsciously holding, Vaughn began to lightly chuckle and let his quivering stomach relax. But he knew not to let go too much when he once again saw the flash of seriousness in Jack's eyes behind his somewhat happy grin. He knew he had intended to mean what he'd said.

Vaughn racked his brain, trying to think of something to say to change the subject, and thought about their earlier conversation. Knowing that talking about Sydney was definitely a safe topic, he cautiously approached it, "Uh… I-I have a question." Jack seemed interested so Vaughn went on, wondering, "Before Irina was gone, what was your family like? Was Sydney a happy child?"

"Oh yes," Jack lightly acknowledged. "She was a very bright little girl. Her intelligence was and is far above most people's level."

"I've noticed that. But she doesn't boast about it."

"No," the older man agreed proudly. Then he sobered again. "We have a few happy memories of our family before it was torn apart – trips to the park and getting ice cream together and such – but I'm not sure how much Sydney remembers. She was only six when we believed her mother had died. That's why it was so important for us to come back to see her again after I knew the truth about Irina.

"On the way to Paris the last time Sydney and I said goodbye to each other, I'd told her that her mother was a murderer and a traitor. I couldn't let her live out the rest of her life believing that to be true." Vaughn nodded sympathetically as Jack talked. "Plus, I wanted her to have good, _new_ memories of her mother…and me."

Vaughn hoped his words were comforting, "I'm sure she will never forget this week."

"I know," Jack offered a wane smile again. "I just wish it could be more."

The two men were still chatting over drinks in the dining room when they heard the back door open. Vaughn stood and moved to the hallway and smiled when he saw his fiancé and her mother coming down the hall. She grinned back, dimples and all, but he didn't miss that her eyelids were red-rimmed, and he knew that she'd spent some time crying. One look at Irina's face, and he knew that she too had shared in her tears.

"Is there any dinner left?" Sydney asked as soon as they finished greeting one another with hugs and kisses.

Vaughn was pleased to inform her, "I had the cook hold it for all of us until you were ready. The Turants' man informed us that Maman would be dining with them this evening."

"Oh." She leaned up to kiss him gratefully. "Well, thank you." She glanced around at the faces of her family and suggested, "Let's eat then, shall we?"

With his new knowledge of Sydney's life, Vaughn watched her over dinner in amazement. She was smiling and laughing with her parents as they shared memories and joked with one another, and as long as no one mentioned the inevitable separation of the next day, it continued. So no one brought it up during the entire meal.

After wishing her parents a good night, Sydney was still grinning as she walked with Vaughn to her bedroom to go their separate ways. As usual, they stopped and faced each other in front of her door, and she sighed contentedly. "We're getting married tomorrow," she reminded him, as it he could forget.

He chuckled and lightly kissed her. "I know. I cannot wait."

"Did you get your work done?"

"Mostly," he nodded. "I should be able to tie up the loose ends in the morning."

"Good," she said with the shining light of love in her eyes. She stepped into his arms and slyly reached up for his shoulders. "So what did you and my dad talk about?"

He knew that she would want to know eventually, but he didn't really want to taint her happy mood by telling her the majority of their conversation. "You," he grinned, sticking to the highlights of his talk with Jack.

"Anything specific?"

In a teasing tone, he told her, "Well, I found out what you were like when you were little."

She closed her eyes for a moment. "Oh no. He didn't tell any of my running-around-the-house-naked stories, did he?"

Vaughn chuckled, "No, but I will definitely be asking him about that as soon as possible."

"Oh, no you don't," she giggled with him. "For once, I'm actually _glad_ they'll be leaving tomorrow." As soon as she said it, he could tell she regretted it by the way her face fell and her gaze dropped to his shirt.

He reached out for her chin and tilted it up to force her eyes to meet his, and noticed hers were slightly watery. "Hey," he whispered. "You still have tomorrow with them. Don't waste it drowning in your tears."

She nodded when she knew he was right, and managed to smile again. "I won't," she vowed.

Sensing that she was still struggling with it, Vaughn added, "You know that they would stay if they could."

"I know," she nodded. Then the idea she'd had earlier that morning came back to her. She took a breath and just spit out what she wanted to say before she lost her nerve, "My parents really liked that cute, little house we saw today." He face flashed with confusion at her abrupt change of subject, so she rushed on, "I was thinking that maybe we could buy it for them, so they could stay here."

"Sydney," he spoke gently, moving to hold both of her hands in his. "When I said that they would stay if they could, it was not a matter of where they would _live_."

"I know," she interrupted, speaking urgently. "But with a place of their own, they _might_ consider it."

"I don't think they _can_, Syd. There are _other_ factors – "

"We'll work them out."

"But – "

"Look, _I_ am the only family they _have_, Vaughn," she kept trying to convince him, knowing what and how he was going to argue that they couldn't stay because it might screw up future generations. "What difference would it make to the future if they stayed here?"

He couldn't believe that she didn't completely understand, but he accredited her desperation to the need she had for her parents to be with her. "I doubt your father will agree that it's that simple."

"At least they could have the _choice_."

Vaughn opened his mouth to argue once more, but thought better of it. With the next evening's sadness of seeing her parents leave forever ahead, he figured there was already enough angst to deal with on what would normally be a joyous occasion without adding an argument between the bride and groom to the mix. Finally, he bobbed his head once. "I'll look into it. And I'll talk to your parents."

"No, _we_ will," she spoke thankfully. "At breakfast." 


	17. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16:**

Sydney almost didn't miss Vaughn in her bed on their last night as two single adults because she was so excited about presenting her idea to her parents the next morning. Throughout the night, she worded what she would say to convince them and tried to imagine every possible argument they might have in order to have a solution already worked out. She was certain that they would see what a great idea it was as she did.

She brought it up before they even went into the dining room for breakfast, as they met them in the hall and walked together and she laid out her idea for them to mull over. Over the next several minutes, they gave her the floor and listened to her attempt at a convincing argument.

"Sydney…" her mother spoke with a pained expression on her face once she was through. "You know we can't stay."

"Why not? What would change?" she asked pointedly. They'd already been through this question and answer already, so Irina stood mute and Jack took a step toward their daughter to try to make her understand.

"Sweetheart," he began gently. "Remember when I tried to tell you that you had to come back to be with Vaughn, and you couldn't believe it without proof?" She nodded. "It's the same – "

She didn't even let him finish his sentence. "I know, but I had to worry about children," she reminded him. "You don't. I am your only child."

Jack was still shaking his head. "I would still need solid evidence that we belonged here, Sydney… We don't have that like we did with you."

Her eyes burned as she stared in disbelief that her suggestion hadn't been as wholeheartedly accepted as she'd hoped. Vaughn could see the anguish in her eyes and wrapped his arm around her shoulder at the same time both of her parents reached for her as well. Irina managed to hug her and then leaned back, wiping the quiet tears from her daughter's cheeks. "No tears, remember? You're getting married today. We can't have a sad bride."

She nodded again and Irina looked around at the men before asking her daughter, "Are you hungry?" and she answered with a shake of her head.

"I don't think I could eat."

"Me neither," Irina admitted with a smile. "And besides, we have to get you ready. Come on," she spoke lightly, stepping in between her and Vaughn to link their arms together. "Let's go." Sydney automatically looked to her soon-to-be husband when Irina noticed and teased, "Say goodbye, darling. You'll see Michael at the other end of the aisle in a few hours."

And suddenly the couple couldn't take their eyes off of one another, no matter how quickly Irina tugged Sydney toward the stairs and up and out of sight.

* * *

It was a nerve-wracking day to say the least. Vaughn had a few last-minute details to work out with his business and the arrangements for the honeymoon, asking for Jack's opinion and advice now and then; Irina got Sydney cleaned up and had started on her hair when Annabelle arrived with their freshly steamed dresses and started to help; and Amèlie was fluttering about, making sure everything was just _perfect_ for the evening's special event. 

Finally, the sun moved into the western sky and everyone was suddenly moving faster, trying to get things done in time. Sydney noticed the activity in the garden out of her bedroom window as Irina was downstairs getting her bouquet of flowers that had been arranged and Annabelle was straightening the hem of her skirt, and commented that it seemed like a lot considering how little planning they'd actually achieved in comparison to all of the shopping. The truth was, Sydney had mentioned on their first excursion that she didn't have much in the way of clothes for their two-month-long honeymoon, especially anything appropriate for a new bride, and the two women went to work helping her while they discussed ideas for the wedding. Honestly, Sydney hadn't done near as much planning as the two of them had, so she really didn't know what was in store for her.

After double checking Sydney's bun in her hair, the way her dress fell to the floor, and making sure her flowers were just right, Irina stood back and surveyed their work. "You look absolutely perfect," she smiled with just a hint of moisture in her eyes.

Sydney's look mirrored her mother's along with hiding a blush as she mumbled her thanks and took a deep breath. She was suddenly starting to feel the nervousness in her stomach, although she wasn't the least bit apprehensive.

There was a knock at the door and Irina went to answer it, and stood there talking to someone through the few inches of space she would allow. Sydney, Annabelle, and Josephine all waited curiously as they cleaned up the room to see who it was when Irina stepped back, turned to Sydney and announced, "Your father would like to speak with you, Sydney…alone."

The other two women in the room quickly got the hint and gathered their things and made their way to the door, while Irina opened it wider to let them out and they moved past Jack. Then Sydney met her dad's eyes through the opening and she saw them twinkle as he stepped inside. Touching her husband's arm, Irina told him that she would let them both know when it would be their time to emerge from the room and go outside to the garden aisle; then she stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind her, leaving them alone.

Jack stood motionless for a long moment just staring at his daughter and she nearly crumbled under his scrutiny. She spoke, only to break the tension, "Well? What do you think?"

"I think," he started as he took a step toward her, "that I've lost my baby girl to this beautiful woman in front of me."

"Dad…" she tried to speak, and suddenly realized she was crying and couldn't say anymore as she choked back a sob. She fought to hold it together and then felt her father's arms around her, holding her tightly.

"Vaughn has promised to take good care of you."

"I know," she sniffed.

"Promise me something?" he asked, and she pulled away just enough to look up into his face. "If he doesn't keep his agreement, you must leave me a message somehow to let me know, and I'll find a way back to…take care of it." She felt like laughing at her father's words, but she understood that he was being serious. He instructed, "Find your great-great-grandfather's desk in New York and leave a note – "

"In the secret compartment under the right side," she finished for him and he nodded. "I remember you had that desk in your office when I was little… You still do?"

He nodded and looked grateful. "I'll check it as soon as we get back. Promise me."

"I promise. But Dad," she shook her head and smiled, "I don't think Michael will disappoint you."

"I should hope not." He held her shoulders. "But I can't help but worry about you."

"I'll be fine. I'm really happy." She smiled again to reassure him, and he pulled her back against his chest.

"I'm so proud of you, Sweetheart."

As she whispered her heartfelt thanks, there was a light knock at the door a moment before it opened and Irina poked her head inside. "They're ready for you," she grinned excitedly and Jack stepped back from his daughter, taking her hand.

"Ready?"

She smiled widely, and let go of her father's hand to wrap her arm around his. "Yes, I am."

* * *

Vaughn entered the garden in sheer surprise at the change of the usual beautiful atmosphere around him into the heavenly ambiance it had been transformed into due to his mother's guidance. Among the plethora of gorgeous flower arrangements around the pond, and candles mixed in that were flickering in the dusk light, he was shocked at the number of people in the area, waiting for the wedding party. He paused on his ritualistic march to the altar to the sound of his cousin's violin music to whisper to his mother, "Where did all these people come from?" He recognized many of them, but there were more than a few faces that were unfamiliar. 

Amèlie shrugged and whispered back, "Annabelle and I spread the word around town. You can't have a proper wedding without guests!"

He stood back, still a little stunned, and then slowly smiled at his mother before leaning over to kiss her cheek. "Mercí, Maman," he said, hoping that it would convey his true gratitude for her selflessness. She simply answered with a reserved smile and a gentle nudge to get him into his position at the front.

Once in place beside his best friend Eric, Vaughn took a deep breath, and strained to see around the fountain for the women that would be descending the makeshift aisle; one woman in particular. After what seemed an eternity, he saw the guests' attention focus on someone at the entrance to the garden and within a moment, he saw Annabelle's seven-year-old niece emerge, carrying a basket of rose petals that she was carefully dropping on the ground beside her, leaving a trail for the bride on her way down the aisle. His nervousness raised just a notch.

There was a second diverting of interest from the little girl to the area behind them, and he saw his future mother-in-law walking toward them in her own specially-made gown, carrying a small bouquet of flowers between her hands, with a wide, yet controlled smile on her face. Vaughn felt his heart pounding, knowing he was yet another step closer to seeing Sydney. He watched Irina stop in her place, but only for a moment when he heard Penelope's tune change to a wedding march and he turned his attention back to the area past the fountain and beyond the entrance of the garden, craning his neck to see his bride on her father's arm.

When she stepped into view, he nearly passed out with the sensations running through his body. Wearing his mother's high-necked wedding gown with its train dragging behind her, Sydney also had a hat sitting in front of where her hair was gathered up off of her neck, and a veil attached was draped down over her face. But he could still see her smile behind it, and noticed her shining eyes meeting his.

He didn't pay much attention to anything else but her from then on, until she was stopped in front of him, and her father officially gave her away with a kiss to her cheek before lowering the veil once more. Then Jack went to stand at the front of the little crowd, and the bride and groom moved to their place in front of the priest.

Father Charles was proud as he led the short ceremony through the proper phrases and prayers, and guided Sydney and Vaughn through their vows; both of them were so wrapped up in each other, that they hardly noticed what was happening. It wasn't until the Father announced them as "husband and wife" that the two stared at each other, completely dumbfounded for a moment until the smiles broke out on their faces in utter glee when they heard the "you may kiss the bride" portion of that announcement.

Holding each other's hands, he leaned over and kissed Sydney sweetly, only as was appropriate for the occasion, leaving their practiced, more passionate kisses for when they were alone.

Penelope's next music selection was a livelier tune, and Michael and Sydney's cue to turn and walk back down the aisle together. Taking her by the arm, Vaughn led his bride away from the garden and to the house to the sound of the music and applause and the sight of a crowd full of happy faces.

Neither one of them spoke even as the moved well out of earshot from everyone else up the back porch steps to the doors that were propped open to be inviting for the guests when it came time for the reception. On the way to the kitchen where Amèlie had instructed they needed to be until the guests were all assembled and they could be properly announced, Vaughn guided Sydney into the dining room and checked to see if they were alone before drawing her close, grinning slyly and kissing her completely, while Sydney giggled like a schoolgirl.

"I just had to kiss you before we're forced tolerate all of those people over the next several hours," he explained with a huge smile still on his face. "I love you."

She could just hear the faint noises of mingling voices approaching, so she touched his face and answered quickly, "I love you too," with just enough time left over for another light peck before moving on to the kitchen, where the cooks and servants were bustling about. One of the older cooks that had been with Vaughn's family long before he was even born came over and extended her hand in congratulations, while her eyes watered and she finally succumbed to the temptation and leaned forward to brush her lips against Michael's cheek. He simply smiled and offered his thanks, softly rubbing Sydney's mid-back subconsciously as the cook went back to work with the others.

Amèlie stepped into the room a few minutes later and mimicked the cook by kissing her son and new daughter-in-law, and then gestured to the door. "Come along; Luc will be announcing you in a moment." She led them through the dining room, across the entry, and to the parlor where the majority of the people were standing or sitting, and nodded to Luc in the entrance who announced, "Monsieur and Madame Vaughn".

More applause followed as the young couple entered the room together, and over the next few hours as they mingled and ate the deliciously prepared meal, they were greeted and hugged and kissed and well-wished more times than they could count.

But as the party died down, and the guests left a little at a time, Sydney noticed her parents looking at the clock on occasion. Approaching them just after saying goodbye to Eric and Annabelle, who were the last to leave, Sydney asked if they were running out of time.

"We should go," Jack spoke solemnly. "We can't miss the window."

Vaughn had overheard Jack's words and turned to his mother, requesting some time alone for Sydney and her parents as she told them goodbye. Amèlie's face softened and she bid them farewell, extending her hand for Jack and kissing Irina on the cheek, and then wishing Sydney and Michael goodnight, she left the foyer for her bedroom to retire, quietly padding her way up the stairs.

Sydney's eyes were already started to tear up as she turned to her father and mother, trying to think of everything she ever wanted to say to them, knowing it would be the last time. "Well…" she tried first, and found that even though the word was a little shaky, she'd gotten it past the forming lump in her throat, at least. "I'll be fine. I'm so glad you could be here for my wedding." Her face was puckered, fighting tears, as she finished that statement, and her mother quickly pulled her into her embrace, battling her own emotions at the same time.

Jack and Vaughn finished forming a little circle around her, each of them touching her in some way, hoping to make her feel supported. She sniffed and managed to speak again over her mother's shoulder, "I'm so glad you and Dad worked things out. I love you, Mom."

"Love you, too, Sydney Anne." More tears developed with the way her mother spoke her given name, remembering instantly how she used to call her that when she was a child as well; and it wasn't only Sydney that was crying.

After a while, the women were able to pry themselves apart, and spent a moment drying each other's tears before Sydney turned her attention to her father. Tilting her head to the side after seeing his lopsided smile, she whispered, "Dad…" and fell into his arms as well. Several minutes and whispered reminders of promises to stay safe and contact him via the desk if there was any trouble, Jack let go of his little girl and held her face to tell her that he loved her for the last time. "I know," she whispered back, trying to smile. Then she told him, "Thank you…for _everything_ you've done for me."

Jack's eyes dropped slightly. "I only I wish I'd done more. I'm…sorry that I wasn't there for you when you were little."

"No," she spoke quickly, shaking her head. "Daddy, everything that you've done for me in the past few months has completely made up for all of those years. I promise you; I don't feel like I was neglected." She paused and made sure to meet his tearful eyes with her own to smile and say, "I love you, Daddy."

He hugged her one last time, and then slowly passed her off to her mother for one more before standing up straight to face their destiny. Jack shook hands with the younger man, nodding to remind Vaughn of their agreement, and then Irina had her turn with her new son-in-law, and she added a kiss to his cheek with her hug. Then the couple took a step toward the door and Jack reminded them, "Stay safe," as Irina dried her face and waved.

And with the opening of the front door, as Sydney and her new husband stood and watched arm-in-arm, Jack and Irina Bristow went back to their life and the future.


	18. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17:**

Sydney stood shell-shocked, staring at the back of the door her parents had just left through, unmoving and dry-eyed as her husband stood beside her and held her by the shoulders in silence. After a few minutes, he turned and draped his other arm around her, leaning to rest his forehead on her temple. "Are you okay?"

Staring straight ahead blankly, she eventually answered his question in a low voice, "Yeah. I will be." Then she toughened the look on her face as if to convince herself of that fact before turning her head to look at her husband. Thinking of him in that relation made her slowly smile and she blinked with the love in her eyes to say, "We're married."

"Yes, we are," he grinned back, reaching for her waist.

"When do we leave for our honeymoon?"

"Tomorrow afternoon," he answered simply.

She slipped her hands up to his shoulders. "Soooo…when are you going to tell me where we're going?"

Taking a step toward the stairs, he pulled her by the hands. "I was thinking…" he paused dramatically, "that I would tell you…" (He was beginning to enjoy this a bit much.) "…in our bedroom…"

"_Our_ bedroom?" she raised an eyebrow.

"What's mine is yours now," he reminded her as he backed up onto the first step. "I had Josephine move your things during the ceremony."

Sydney stopped him, and took one step up until they were level again. "I love that you're so good at thinking ahead," she said in a sultry voice and then brought her finger up to trace his collarbone through the high neck of his wedding shirt. "So I'm…sleeping with _you_ tonight, I guess," she teased, saying it as if it wasn't something she _really_ wanted as much as she did.

He shrugged one shoulder as his hands moved to her waist, and teased right back, "Well, you know…if you _want_ to."

Giggling just a little bit, Sydney leaned into him and lightly kissed his lips before reaching down for one of his hands on her waist. "Come on," she coaxed, and then, leading the way up the steps, she guided them to the bedroom they would now share. But the minute they reached the door, Vaughn stopped her by tugging on her hand, flashed her a wry grin, and then leaned over and scooped her into his arms to carry her across the threshold.

Sydney was laughing by the time she had her arms around her new husband's neck, completely wrapped up in the moment and the emotion of the day coming to a close. She kissed him again elatedly, and was still grinning as he set her down so that he could shut the door behind them and stoke the fire in the fireplace. She slowly moved across the floor toward the balcony, checking out their room as she walked and waited for Vaughn to join her. But the pull of the moon outside of their open doors was enough to lead her on out onto the stone balcony to look up at the view and sigh in contentment.

Casting her eyes from the beautiful deep blue sky to the ground below a minute later, she caught just a glimpse of her parents at the edge of the property, making their way back to the jumping off place on the Eiffel Tower. Sydney wrapped her arms around herself when she saw the way her father was holding her mother up, guiding her away from the estate, knowing that it was just as hard on them to leave as it was for her to watch them go.

"They'll miss you too," Sydney heard Vaughn say as he came up behind her and slid his palms down her long sleeves with his gaze on the same spot on the lawn below where her parents were gradually moving out of sight.

Sydney sniffed away some of the leftover emotion and nodded. "I know," she whispered back. "It's just not going to be the same here without them."

He completely wrapped his arms around her then and tucked his nose into her neck, taking a deep whiff of her scent as he comforted her in gentle silence. Sydney watched her mother and father for the next couple of minutes until they were no longer visible beyond the trees at the edge of the grounds, and then leaned her moistened cheek against Vaughn's. Then she gradually turned around and faced him, burying her head in his shoulder.

Vaughn let out a soft sigh as he stroked her back, assuming that their intimate night ahead would have to be put on hold, at least for a little while until she could get past her grief. But only a minute had passed when she pulled back, wiped her eyes and sniffed again and said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be like this right now."

"No, Syd, it's okay," he tried to convince her. He stroked her shoulders and held her face, wiping away the remaining traces of her tears with his thumb, and giving her the look of concern that he felt for her deep within his heart. His words were just as soft, "I'm here to provide whatever you need."

Her eyes quickly met his and turned a shade darker just before she lunged forward and kissed him in a deep and passionate way, causing him to stumble back through the doors with her. When she let him go long enough to catch their breath a minute later, Vaughn tried to ask what she was doing, but he barely got part of her name out when she captured his lips again and pushed him even further into the room.

She answered his unasked questions when they broke apart the next time by whispering huskily, "Right now, Michael, all I need is _you_."

And seeing the seriousness in her eyes, he was more than willing to comply.

* * *

"You never did tell me where we're going tomorrow," Sydney reminded her groom long after getting settled in each other's arms in their bed with her head resting on his shoulder and her arm draped across his bare stomach.

Vaughn caressed her back with one hand and tucked the other comfortably behind his head. "Well…I thought we should travel to New York to work on our story of how we met for my mother because what we came up with in the spur of the moment the day you came was a little weak," he teased and she smiled. "And then I realized that there are many places we could visit in that area; Niagara Falls for one. I've heard it's very romantic."

"I've never been to Niagara Falls," Sydney quietly admitted and Vaughn lifted his head in surprise.

"You haven't? I thought you had been all over the world."

"Well, yes, for work; but I've had very few missions that were in vacation destinations."

He rested his head back on the pillow. "Then I suppose I chose a good place to start."

"A _perfect_ place," she smiled as she sat up slightly to look at him. "I wanted to go to New York anyway to leave a message for my parents in my great-great-grandfather's desk." Then a realization passed over her face as her gaze fixated on the fire across the room. "I'll get to _meet_ him."

Vaughn tickled the skin on her shoulder and informed her, "We _will_ be gone a bit longer than the two months I'd originally planned – it will be more like four."

"Four months?"

"We have to account for travel time to get to our destinations. There are no airplanes here," he reminded her with his eyes twinkling. "I hope you're not disappointed that we will be gone so long."

"On a four-month-long honeymoon alone with you?" she raised one eyebrow. "Not a chance." She punctuated her statement with a kiss.

Knowing it was something she was really looking forward to, he warned, "We will miss the birth of Eric and Annabelle's baby."

"That's okay; the baby will be here when we get back," Sydney placated. Then her voice turned sultry, "Besides, I'm sure we'll be too busy trying to make our own to even think about it."

A low rumble emitted from Vaughn's throat as he brought his hand up to the back of her neck and pulled her face near his own where he could use his lips to toy with hers. "I love you – you know that?" he asked, keeping their faces and bodies close.

She blinked her tired eyes and smiled. "I love you too," she sighed contentedly as she lowered her cheek to his chest. "And I'm glad you're my husband now because you are not leaving this bed tonight."

"Because you need me to snuggle with to sleep?"

Lifting her head once more, she threw him a playful look. "Who said anything about sleeping?"

* * *

It took until noon of the next day to pack the rest of the things they would need for their trip, and after a quick lunch, Vaughn led his wife to the door and the carriage waiting, but was stopped by the sound of his mother's voice calling them. They stopped at the door and turned to see Amélie descending the stairs with a folded piece of paper in her hands.

"Maman," Vaughn shook his head. "We would not leave without saying goodbye."

"Oh, I know," she smiled at her son. "But I wanted to give you something – as a wedding present, since I did not give you anything yesterday."

Sydney felt the need to object. "Maman, planning and hosting the wedding was enough – "

But Amélie held up a hand. "No. This was long overdue anyway." She held out the paper to Vaughn and he took it and unfolded it, and when he saw what it was, he felt his jaw slacken. "It's the deed to the estate," she explained. "This home is yours and Sydney's now, Michel. I was planning on officially giving it to you when you married; I am just sorry that I did not know you had earned it long ago by taking care of our finances so well."

"Maman," he protested, "I was merely taking care of you the way a son should."

"I know. But now it is time for you to take care of your wife and future family," she glanced at Sydney. "I will begin looking for a new residence while you are away."

Sydney and Vaughn's reactions were simultaneous as they practically shouted "no" and took a step closer to her. He was the one to explain that they wanted nothing more than to keep her in the house for their own happiness, adding that they would want their future children to have their grandmother close.

"But I would not want to be a burden…"

"You're not," Sydney argued. "Having you here will only be a blessing."

There were tears in her eyes as she smiled slightly and accepted their offer, and then she looked past them through the open door to Claude and the carriage he had waiting. "Go on now," she chided. "You don't want to be late." She took back the deed to keep it safe while they were away, and then she hugged and kissed each of them goodbye and watched them go down the steps, leaving her with waves as the buggy pulled toward the estate's entrance.

As soon as they were on the road leading toward town, Sydney noticed that her husband was unusually quiet. "Are you okay?" she just had to know as she leaned into his shoulder.

"Yes. I suppose that I am in shock."

"Because your mother gave us the house?" He nodded. "Why? We knew that you would one day own it."

"But I assumed that I would inherit it when Maman died; I never thought she would pass it on to me so soon. Not that I don't appreciate it – I am just stunned that she was willing to move out to let us have the estate all to ourselves. She loves our home because it is the only place she lived with my father." He was still in shock but another realization crossed his mind. "She would have given it to me even if I'd married Elizabeth," he thought out loud.

Sydney could understand his amazement. "She wants you to be happy, Michael, because she _loves_ you. Almost as much as I do, apparently."

Vaughn's arm tightened around her shoulders and he looked down to meet her smile, knowing that she was right. He knew that he should just be grateful and appreciative for his mother and put the surprise behind him for now – at least so they could fully enjoy their honeymoon properly. "Are you prepared to start the first leg of our journey?" he questioned, boldly changing the subject. Then something occurred to him, "You do not get seasick, do you?"

"No," she shook her head definitely. "I've never had motion sickness on anything."

"Good," he grinned at her again. "Then it will be an enjoyable voyage."

"I should hope so. I'll be with you, right?"

Vaughn kissed the side of his wife's head and whispered, "For the rest of your life."


	19. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18:**

Michael and Sydney Vaughn spent the better part of the journey across the wide ocean getting acquainted and adjusting to married life, proudly introducing themselves to their fellow passengers with their married names over dinners and announcing happily that they were on their honeymoon as much as possible. The people were genuinely congratulatory, and Sydney smiled a lot more than she had in years.

Niagara Falls was more beautiful than Sydney had imagined. Having become a national park only two years earlier, it hadn't yet had attracted the attention of a massive amount of vacationers like it had in her day. And it was quiet and peaceful and more romantic than any place that she'd been to on earth, although she knew that probably had something to do with the company more than the location.

They spent weeks traveling throughout Canada and New England, spending several days in New York as planned to work on their supposed past as "friends" before Sydney came to Paris. Vaughn helped her find where her great-great-grandfather's office was in the city as promised, and calmed her anxiousness over possibly meeting her ancestor.

But to their disappointment, no one answered their knock when they arrived at the door that read "John Bristow, P.A.", but because all she wanted to do was leave a note in a secret compartment in the desk and knew that might be difficult with her ancestor in the room anyway, Sydney was prepared with a Plan B.

Watching her pull a hatpin from her covered head, Vaughn knew immediately what she was doing and teasingly asked, "The old-fashioned way?" reminding her of their last break-in, when they snuck into Vaughn's estate-turned-museum before their leaps back in time.

Grinning sheepishly at his comment, Sydney had the skeleton-keyed lock opened in seconds, and the two went in to put the note in the spot that would hopefully house it until her father went searching for it nearly a hundred years in the future.

It had taken her some time to decide what the note should say, with the knowledge that it might be found by someone _other_ than her father, considering it couldn't reveal anything about their time-traveling. So, on a scrap of paper that would be dismissed by anyone else as garbage, she'd put only one simple word to effectively communicate how happy she was with Vaughn: _loved_.

When the note was in its place, Sydney stood up straight and ran her palm over the top of her great-great-grandfather's desk and smiled as she pictured her mother and father joyfully reading the note, knowing that she was happy and secure in her new life. And then, with Vaughn's hand protectively in the small of Sydney's back, they went back out of the office to enjoy the rest of their honeymoon.

They rode the ferry next, and paid attention to the sights and smells and sounds as they made up their meeting story for the sake of family and friends; acting out their introductions while trying to hide their completely infatuated smiles. And unlike the phony story about how they met and became friends first, Vaughn pulled his wife into his arms in an area devoid of people along the railing and kissed her. Every minute of every day spent on their four-month-long furlough was completely magical.

But while on the voyage home, things turned bad when Sydney woke up morning after morning on the ship, completely and totally sick; her body wracked with nausea and vomiting. "I've _never_ gotten motion sickness," she'd complained the first day as Vaughn tucked her into bed after she'd emptied her stomach.

He'd just explained it away as probably something she ate that didn't agree with her, but after the third morning of the same routine, he snuck out while she was taking a mid-morning nap to find the doctor in the infirmary to ask him for his advice, praying that she hadn't contracted some disease during their travels.

Dr. Boulet listened intently to Vaughn as he described her symptoms, adding that everything she had kept down had been in the evenings, when he noticed that the doctor's eyebrow began to raise in amusement. "You're on your honeymoon, correct?" he asked.

Vaughn nodded nervously, "On our way home, yes."

"And you've been married…" he waited for Vaughn to fill in the blank.

"Almost four months."

Taking a deep breath, Dr. Boulet told him, "I'd have to examine her, but it sounds as though your wife is expecting."

Blinking back his shock, Vaughn asked numbly, "She's…p-pregnant?" He'd practically whispered the last word.

The doctor laughed and slapped Vaughn on the shoulder. "Let's go find out."

Sydney was hunched over the toilet again when Vaughn came into their room with the doctor to check her condition. Vaughn entered the bathroom alone, knelt beside her and stroked her head and shoulders until it passed, and then pulled her into his hug.

"Where were you?" she asked weakly over his shoulder.

"I was getting the doctor."

"I don't need a doctor. I'm just seasick…apparently."

Vaughn kept her close and smiled wryly, mildly arguing, "I don't think that's what it is."

"What?" she queried as she pulled away to look at him.

Without answering, he simply stood them both to their feet and guided her to lie back in the bed again. Sydney acknowledged the doctor after she was sufficiently tucked in, and Vaughn stood back to let Dr. Boulet ask the appropriate questions. "When was your last menstruation?" he asked first, having already gotten the other impertinent answers from Vaughn during their initial conversation.

Her face scrunched curiously. "I don't know… It's been a while."

"Possibly six to eight weeks ago?"

"It could be; it's been irregular and we were traveling, so…it's hard to remember."

Vaughn spoke up then, "We were in Canada, I recall." He thought for a moment and then added, "In July, at the end of the month."

Dr. Boulet smiled slightly, calculating that in his mind as he walked over to sit next to Sydney on the bed to examine her. He checked the size of her pupils, checked her temperature with his palm on her forehead, looked inside of her mouth for sores, and asked if she had any rashes on her body that she couldn't explain. When everything else seemed normal, he sat back and smiled again. "I would say that you are pregnant, Madame Vaughn."

"What?" she reacted automatically. "No, I'm not." In her mind, she was arguing that she was on regular birth control shots…and then realized how long it had been since her last one, months before her leap back in time.

Dr. Boulet had ignored her protests and was busy giving Vaughn instructions on how to care for her until they were off of the ship when Sydney finally snapped back to the present, and heard him addressing her once again. "Once you get back home, you should be fine. I'm sure it's just the motion of the ship combined with your morning sickness making you ill." He turned back to Vaughn. "If she hungers for anything in the evenings, make sure she gets it."

"I will," Vaughn promised.

Smiling and turning to leave, he reminded them, "Come and find me if you need me for _anything_."

Once Vaughn had nodded in understanding, Dr. Boulet left their room and closed the door behind him, leaving Sydney and Vaughn both bewildered enough not to speak for a moment. She studied his contemplative face and finally asked timidly, "Are…are you mad?"

"No," he laughingly assured her as he lowered himself to the bed and picked up one of her hands. "Quite the opposite, in fact."

Sydney visibly sighed and questioned, "Then, what were you thinking?"

He stroked the back of her hand with his thumb and divulged, "The night you came…back…" He paused and smiled. "You told me that you had seen the two of us and our son in the painting." She nodded, wondering what he was getting at. "And you mentioned that we would be making that painting in about ten years or so…"

She knew where he was headed and preempted his question. "I know," she shook her head. "I…guess I just _thought_ that it would take us a couple of years to have a baby, and assumed that it would be that long before the portrait _could_ be painted judging by the age of the boy…I don't know." Her smile fell a little, "I didn't realize it was going to happen so soon – I was looking forward to being alone with you for a while longer."

Reaching out to lift her chin, Vaughn smiled at her. "Hey…we're having our son, and he'll be perfect." He wasn't satisfied enough to let his fingers drop from her face until he saw the smile reach her eyes, and then, realizing he'd never asked, he casually questioned, "Do you happen to know what we're going to name him too?"

Pondering her answer for just a moment, Sydney slowly grinned. "That's easy," she revealed, thinking to their great-great-grandchild who had started out as her friend and partner first. "He'll be Eric."

* * *

The rest of the voyage was a little easier once they understood what it was that was making Sydney sick. Instead of making her eat something in the morning like he had before, Vaughn would wait until her morning sickness had passed and she would _feel_ hungry before giving her something salty to eat. And for the most part, she began keeping it down and retaining some nourishment. But she didn't think she would be completely better again until she was back on dry land.

Amèlie noticed that there was something amiss the moment the newlywed Vaughns arrived at the estate, as Vaughn carefully helped Sydney out of the carriage and up the front steps. Vaughn's mother had been in a gleeful state of welcoming them home when she noticed verbally, "Sydney, you are pale – are you alright??"

Vaughn paused on the stairs and held his wife close so that they could smile and announce, "We've…started our family."

It only took about two seconds for Amèlie to understand his meaning, and in an instant, she had moved to Sydney's other side to help her complete the climb to the front door. Once inside and out of the line of sight from the servants, Amèlie pulled each of them into a hug in turn, asking for more details about the pregnancy and when the baby was due to arrive. Sydney was pleased to announce that their child would be born around mid-May, and then as soon as her mother-in-law's questions were appeased, she begged to lay down, tired from their journey.

Amèlie was quick to let them go; telling them, "I had Josephine tidy up your room this morning," as Vaughn slowly led Sydney to the stairs, tossing his smile and his gratitude over his shoulder.

Sydney weakly leaned into him as they took each laborious step, and wondered, "How did she know when we were coming home?"

"I sent her a wire yesterday to let her know we would be arriving so that she could have the servants prepare for us."

"You were worried about me, weren't you?" She felt Vaughn's head nod against hers, and just allowed herself to feel the weight of his love for her. Then she admitted a little embarrassedly, "I've _never_ felt this weak before."

He chuckled lightly, saying that she would soon feel better, but that didn't stop him from pausing on the steps long enough to sweep her into his arms and carry her the rest of the way. "I hope your mother doesn't see this," Sydney warned. "She would be appalled."

"She'll get over it," he answered flippantly with one of the phrases he'd picked up from Sydney over the months they'd been together, causing her to laugh.

Once inside their room, Vaughn set her down on her feet and shut the door to help her undress and get into bed, promising to bring her something to eat from the kitchen if she felt up to it. "Just some water and a piece of dry bread for now," she requested as she adjusted on the pillow. He started for the door when she added, "And a few slices of tomato, if we have it."

Vaughn's lips slowly curved up as he reminded her, "I suppose those cravings Dr. Boulet told us about have begun already." But before she could open her mouth to say something sassy in retaliation, he rushed ahead and told her that he loved her and would be back in a few minutes with her food.

As her husband left her alone in their room, in their bed, in _their house_, pregnant with their first child, Sydney could do nothing but stare at the ceiling and smile, internally realizing: _so, __**this**__ is what contentment feels like_… She couldn't have been happier.

* * *

Sydney regained her strength and her appetite times three over the next few weeks, and by the time she was about seven months pregnant, she and Vaughn had set up a crib on the opposite end of their room, and had collected much of what they would need. Amèlie had offered to look for a nanny and set the woman and the baby up in another bedroom from the day of the baby's birth, but Sydney thanked her and insisted that she wanted to handle it on her own, at least for a little while.

As the days passed and the amount of the baby's things grew with the size of her stomach, Sydney found herself increasingly bored, waiting for Little Eric's arrival. Sure, there were guests and friends stopping by and offering presents when they heard the news, and she had Annabelle's regular visits to occupy her…but every time she held their little Emma, it just made her long for her son's birth even more. She began to withdraw and spend more and more time alone, usually curled up with a book by the fireplace in their bedroom or in the garden if it was warm enough.

Vaughn assumed she was simply enjoying her freedom before her life as a mother began, until his own mother stopped by his new office and knocked one afternoon. He'd moved his desk out of their bedroom to another room to make way for the baby's things, and discovered that he liked the separation between his business and personal lives more than he thought he would miss the convenience of having his work so close.

Presently, Amèlie didn't hesitate with her question of Sydney's whereabouts, and when Vaughn heard the worry in her voice, he asked her what was wrong. "She's canceled another outing with Annabelle, Michel – that makes three this week. I'm worried about her."

Setting down a paper he'd had in his hand when his mother entered and he'd politely stood, Vaughn nodded and assured her, "I'll go check on her and find out what's wrong, Maman."

"She's in the garden," Amèlie informed him as he moved past her to leave the room.

Because he noticed that it was such a beautiful spring day, Vaughn couldn't begrudge his wife's desire to want to be outside at home, without having to worry about dressing up to go out. In their months since returning from their honeymoon, he'd lavished her with anything she set her heart on, especially when it came to preparing for the baby. Business had been good, and he'd made quite a bit of money from the sale of some properties while he was away (under the management of his best friend, Eric) and was able to buy several more that interested him upon their return. So he could afford to give whatever Sydney wanted, and he couldn't understand that there could be any reason she'd be unhappy.

She was lying on her back on the grassy hill near the swing with her eyes closed when Vaughn entered the secluded garden and he took a moment to study her shapely figure. The mound that housed their baby was growing daily, but in her current position, her stomach was flattened instead of perfectly round like it was when she was standing. The sight made him smile as he approached and knelt to crawl across the grass toward her, kissing her lips to announce his arrival.

It was then that he realized that she'd been taking a little catnap as she woke to his kiss and opened her eyes, taking a deep breath and sighing as she did. Vaughn snuggled up next to her with his head resting on the crook of his elbow, and laid his hand on her stomach before announcing, "Maman is worried about you."

"Oh?" she mumbled sleepily.

"Were you supposed to go out with Annabelle today?"

Sydney was quiet for a minute and then moved to use her hands to push to a sitting position beside him, answering, "I just didn't feel like going anywhere today."

There was something in the tone of her voice that made him wonder, "Is everything alright?"

"I'm fine," she shrugged lightly, but didn't turn to look at him. Without prodding her for further information, he silently rubbed his hand on her back for a moment until she sighed and pushed against the ground to turn herself to face him. Her voice was soft. "All Annabelle talks about is the baby, and preparing for the baby, and what motherhood is like…and I'm just getting a little tired of it when all I feel like I'm doing is waiting," she explained. "And after last week…"

Vaughn sat up to hold her hands and face her to ask curiously, "What happened?"

She swallowed before continuing, "We went to her mother's for a visit, and as we were sitting there, watching Annabelle's mother bond with her grandchild, it just…made me miss my parents." She cast her gaze downward, emotional tears filling her eyes. "I mean…they will never get to hold my baby."

Pulling her close to kiss the side of her head, Vaughn questioned, "Did you say anything to Annabelle about this?"

"No," Sydney shook her head. "I didn't want to hurt her feelings because I know she's just trying to make me feel comfortable and well-prepared for what lies ahead."

He kissed her in the same spot again and suggested, "Maybe you should." Then he reminded her, "You don't want her to think that you're avoiding her for another reason."

"Pardon me, sir," a timid voice spoke up behind Vaughn, interrupting their conversation and Sydney's reluctance to do as her husband requested. It was Josephine standing at the entrance to the garden, and she waited as Vaughn stood and helped his wife up before speaking what she'd come for. "I did not wish to be rude, but your mother sent me to get you right away… You have visitors."

Sydney nodded and told Vaughn in English, "It's probably Annabelle and Eric… I told her that they should stop by this evening so that she would know that I wasn't upset with her – "

"Madame," Josephine's rushed voice interjected once more, and when she began again, she spoke in surprisingly good English that Sydney had been helping her with over the months: "It is not the Turants."

"Then who is it?" Vaughn wanted to know.

Josephine stared directly at Sydney to happily announce, "It is your parents – they have returned!"


	20. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19:**

Sydney stared blankly at their young servant and she choked out, "What?" before quickly walking out of the garden past Josephine without waiting for the unimportant answer. Vaughn was right on his wife's heels and caught up to her as they exited the garden in order to keep her calm and steady so that she wouldn't trip and hurt herself or the baby.

He held her arm as they ascended the back patio steps and went inside and she frantically searched the hall and foyer, looking for them; finally entering the downstairs sitting room, finding them talking with Amèlie while sitting on the couches.

"Mom? Dad?" Sydney blurted unthinkingly as soon as she saw their familiar faces of her parents who were dressed appropriately for the era this time, and watched as they immediately rose to happily greet her. She rushed to embrace them at the same time, and when she was satisfied, she pulled away, wiping her moist cheeks. "What are you doing here?"

"We've decided to…move here to be close to you. Permanently," Irina spoke for both her and her husband in French so that Amèlie would not feel left out.

But Sydney was confused. "What?" she asked as she looked back and forth between the two of them.

Jack reached over to touch her arm. "We'll explain everything, sweetheart."

Vaughn knew what he meant and decided to assume the responsibility of getting rid of his mother so that they could talk freely with the Bristows. "Maman – " he began, but she held up a hand to stop him.

"Say no more, Michel. I have some planting to attend to."

He didn't even have to thank her as she left the room with her understanding smile.

As Vaughn gestured to the couches to suggest they sit down again, Irina touched her daughter's round stomach, tearfully noticing, "Look at you."

"I know," Sydney blushed as she moved toward the couch to sit next to her parents. She affectionately rubbed her stomach as she lowered herself to the seat. "He's a little earlier than we'd expected."

"That happens sometimes," Irina commented absently, and as Jack took control of the conversation, Sydney knew the truth that her birth hadn't been planned either. But, judging by the loving way her parents had treated her during their last visit, Sydney was assured that she'd at least been _wanted_. She inwardly smiled as she turned to listen to her father.

"Before we left, I told you that we would need proof that we belonged here before we could stay," Jack said and Sydney nodded. Then he added tritely, "We found it…obviously."

"How? I mean, what was it?"

"It's been over three years for us since we were here last," Jack started. "Irina became increasingly unhappy as time went on, so we began searching a little more in depth for confirmation. Over time, we discovered that we will be buying a piece of property with a house near here a little less than six months from now."

"You're kidding," Sydney brightened. "Do you know which one it will be?"

Irina was grinning. "That cute little cottage about three miles south of here."

"No," the younger woman laughed. "Really?"

Jack nodded to confirm it. "And," he added pointedly, "we'll be buying it from – "

"Us," Vaughn interjected and all eyes turned to him sitting in an adjacent chair on Sydney's other side.

Sydney was the first to ask what he was talking about and realized later that her parents were not as surprised as she was about the little tidbit of information he then offered, "I bought it; I finalized the paperwork just a couple of days ago."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Sydney wondered.

Vaughn shook his head and smiled. "I was going to surprise you by taking you there when all the repairs were done. I suppose I know now how long that will take," his smile widened as he looked toward his in-laws.

Sydney's eyes were teary again as she cheerfully turned back to her parents. "So, you're really staying here with us for good?"

"We don't have any other plans," Irina teased and then pulled her daughter into another hug. "I'm just so glad we'll have the rest of our lives to get to know you better. Watching our grandchildren grow up will be a bonus."

Pulling away slightly, Sydney curiously asked, "We're going to have more than one?"

Irina chuckled, "I don't know, sweetheart; that's up to you and Michael. Jack and I didn't want to know more than we had to once we knew it was our destiny to come back."

Sydney nodded in understanding, "Right. Of course." Then her contented smile settled on her face. "You're really here."

Her mother bobbed her head again and then let her gaze fall on Sydney's stomach. "So, how is he?"

"Active," Sydney giggled, rubbing her belly again. "He doesn't stop kicking me for too long. Do you want to feel it?"

Without waiting for her answer, Sydney grabbed her mother's hand and placed it on the spot that Little Eric seemed to enjoy kicking the most and was rewarded with the quick and gentle pressure against her hand. "I always loved that," Irina sighed happily with her eyes closed. She tilted her head toward her husband and reached for his hand so that he could feel it to. "Remember that, Jack?"

"Yes, I do," he smiled as well.

"Well," Sydney murmured as her parents pulled their hands away. "This little one certainly likes to keep his other foot in my ribs most of the time," she pushed against the offending pressure as she explained, "Hurts like hell sometimes."

"It'll be over before you know it," Irina reminded her.

"I know…although it seemed to be dragging out these last few months. I just want him here already." She looked from her mother to her father and back again. "I think the time will go faster now."

Irina touched her daughter's face again and smiled. "This is so weird," Sydney shook her head. "Just this morning, I was writing a letter to you in my journal – "

"We read it," Jack interrupted and Sydney blinked in shock.

"How? I haven't even _thought_ of a place to hide it yet."

"It was in this house," Irina explained. "Later, after it became a museum. Jack and I bought it shortly after we returned and found your journal with the rest of the books on the shelf. Today's entry was your last."

Sydney smiled slightly with the strangeness of it all. "What about the note in the desk? Did you get that too?"

"Yes, and we knew you were happy," Jack replied, reflectively. "We just missed you."

Her mother added, "And we _really_ wanted to know what your life was like when you had the baby you talked about in the journal, but when it abruptly ended, we had to know why. So we started researching…until we discovered that we once owned that house and we knew that we belonged here."

Shaking her head while trying to keep it straight, Sydney asked, "What about…_this_ house? If you owned it, what did you do with it before you left?"

Irina grinned and shared a grin with her husband before answering. "We gave it to our great-great-_great_-grandson and his family." Vaughn and Sydney shared a grin as well when they knew that it was Weiss they were speaking of, but before either one of them could react, Irina went on and divulged, "…As a very large baby shower gift."

"They had another baby?" Sydney asked cheerfully, but her mother shook her head.

"They had triplet boys."

"No!" Sydney laughed and looked over at her husband as they reached for each other's hands. "So now they have four?"

"Yes, and little Sydney is a complete doll. We spent a lot of time with her. She was turning out to be a great big sister to those three little boys when we left."

Sydney smiled, picturing her namesake her mother mentioned and continued with her questions about her friend and descendant. "Is Weiss still an agent?"

"Not field-rated," Jack acknowledged. "He wanted to be able to spend more time helping out his wife once the babies were born."

"I can imagine," Sydney replied. Then she wondered, "What about Will and Francie? How were they?"

"Happy with their two children," Jack went on. "They had a boy and a girl." Then he sobered a bit. "We would have told them that you were alive because Sloane was killed – " he paused when Sydney stiffened slightly, " – but we didn't know how to explain that they would still never see you again."

With her eyes tearing up slightly and her husband's hand squeezing hers in support, Sydney nodded. "I understand." Blinking back her tears when she realized the most important of her questions had been answered, Sydney stood up with the others following suit, saying, "Well…let's get you both settled. I'm sure Josephine has already made up your room."

"And we would like to see our house again, if you don't mind," Irina reminded Sydney, whose smile widened.

"Of course," she said lightly, looking toward her husband. "We'll go with you."

Deciding to walk because they still had plenty of time before dinner, the four made their way to the little cottage that looked almost exactly the same as it had the year before. Irina pleasantly sighed when she saw the run-down home and noted, "It hasn't changed one bit."

"Mm, it will soon, however," Vaughn informed them. "My crew will start working on it next week."

"Really," Jack said as more of a statement than a question, but the younger man still nodded. "Would you mind if we helped with the decision-making?"

"Not at all," Vaughn reacted and then added lightly, "After all, it is _your_ house."

They spent the next hour walking around and inside of the house, pointing out the repairs and improvements that were needed, with Irina adding what amenities she would like to have, and Jack conferring with Vaughn about what they could mutually afford. Within the same period of time, as the men and women split up, Vaughn decided to take Jack on as a partner in his thriving real estate business, at least until he could branch out on his own. The girls were in the kitchen, discussing colors and natural light and curtains when the men came back and made the little announcement.

Sydney could not hold back her excited, proud smile from branching out across her face as she stepped into the confines of her husband's arms and hugged him for his thoughtfulness, and when she stepped back again, she noticed that her parents were watching them happily.

Gratefully touching his face one last time, Sydney pulled away from her spouse, rubbed her round stomach, and announced, "I'm getting hungry. Should we head back now?" She knew there was more that she wanted to say and do to show her husband her thanks, but she wanted to be alone for that. And so, the quartet made their short journey home.

Over dinner, Jack and Irina explained to Amèlie that they'd decided to sacrifice and leave their old life in the U.S. to be with their daughter, adding that they were looking to buy a house in the area. Amèlie generously offered her son's help, and they accepted, just to keep the illusion that their destiny hadn't already been set for them.

But as soon as dinner was over and her parents decided to go for a sunset horseback ride and Amèlie went out to visit friends, Sydney asked her husband to walk with her. He gladly accepted and again they meandered their way toward her favorite place – the garden – lacing his fingers with hers as they talked.

"Is there any particular reason for this walk?" he wondered delightfully as they approached the outskirts of the garden.

Sydney nodded slightly, but she wanted to word what she wanted to say perfectly. "You amaze me," she finally started and he looked over at her in surprise. "How is it that you think of _everything_ I want and need before I can even ask for it?"

He chuckled and pulled her to sit down on his lap on a nearby bench across from the pond, lovingly stretching his palm over their baby. "I don't know," he admitted, raising his eyes to hers. "I just know that I want to always see you happy."

She kissed him then for a moment and then leaned her forehead against his to ask, "When do you think your mother will be back?"

"Hmm, I doubt it will be anytime soon – maybe not until tomorrow. Why?"

"I was just wondering if she would be here to think it odd that I wanted to go to bed early tonight," she spoke in a low voice that made him half grin. But then what he'd said sunk in and she curiously asked, "I thought she was just going to visit friends."

"Mm, Catherine," Vaughn nodded, and then he dropped his voice a notch to speak secretively. "But I overheard one of the servants saying that Elizabeth was discovered to be in the family way, and because she is not yet married, Maman is helping Catherine find a place to send her in exile until the baby's born."

"My gosh," Sydney blinked in shock. "I know I don't like her, but I almost feel sorry for her."

"Don't. It's not the first time it's happened to her."

"What?"

"A couple of years ago," he explained, "Elizabeth confessed to me that she had gotten pregnant during our engagement, but she miscarried before the baby was born."

"And you didn't know this?"

"No," he shook his head. "It wasn't my child, of course, and I was in New York for over a year at the time all of this transpired. When I got back, it was over, and she kept it a secret for another year before she slipped up and told me. I'm sure she was not planning to disclose that information for the duration of our marriage had we gone through with it."

"Wow," Sydney blinked again. "No wonder you didn't want to marry her."

Vaughn slowly smiled, "There were a plethora of reasons to end our engagement… That one was actually fairly minor."

"Hmm," Sydney murmured thoughtfully, letting his story absorb as she affectionately rubbed her stomach and his hand still resting on it. She adjusted the placement of his hand so that he could experience the same continual kick she was feeling and together they just enjoyed the feel of the life they'd created beneath their fingers.

Vaughn kissed her temple after a few minutes and moved his lips to her neck to taste her there, using his hands to simultaneously rub her back and stomach. "Your parents might think it odd," he suddenly mumbled against her skin.

With the sensations of his hands and lips on her, she was slightly confused, "What are talking about?"

"If we went to bed early."

She immediately understood and flippantly countered, "So?"

"So…let's not."

Sydney pushed him away and looked into his eyes to question, "What?"

But instead of answering, Vaughn decided to show her his idea and slid his wife off of his lap to stand up and take her by the hand. Leading her toward the fountain and the arches beyond it, he asked, "Remember the first day you were here…what you said about the garden?"

"Vaguely. So much has happened here. We got married here," she reminded him with a small grin as they reached the exact place they'd repeated their vows.

He shared her smile but continued on through the arches toward the gate. "No, I meant in here…on the patch of grass beside the swing." As soon as they were within the walls of the little paradise, he jogged her memory by telling her, "You said you wanted to make love in here." Sydney's face slowly brightened and heated up at the same time as he coerced, "That's…one demand of yours that I haven't yet fulfilled."

She couldn't speak, which only pleased him even more, and he left her just long enough to close and lock the gate behind them. That's when she found her voice, "There's a lock? Why didn't I know that?"

"There wasn't that day," he informed her as he walked back toward her. "I had it installed after your request."

Her heart started pounding to the point that she was sure she would bust and she automatically raised her hands to wrap them around his shoulders as he approached and embraced her. "See, I was right," she spoke gleefully. "You really do think of _everything_." 


	21. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20:**

Sydney woke up to the quiet sounds of someone moving about in her room, and she opened her eyes to find the other side of her bed empty in the early morning light coming in through their balcony doors. Lifting her head up off of the pillow a few inches, she saw her husband searching around in their armoire across the room for something. "What are you looking for?" she asked sleepily, wondering if she could help him find whatever it was.

Vaughn turned around quickly and made a face as he shut the door and walked toward her, touching their baby's crib as he passed by. "I'm sorry, sweetheart; I didn't mean to wake you."

"No, I'm fine," she assured him, and then continued to wait for him to say what it was he was seeking, without bothering to move any more than she had to.

Because he had nothing to hide from her, he immediately told her, "I've decided to give up all of the Rambaldi research, and I thought I left a box full of notes in this closet." He gestured over his shoulder, and then he shrugged. "I suppose it doesn't matter; I was just going to throw it out while I had it fresh in my mind."

"Are you sure that's what you want to do? Give up Rambaldi?" She knew that searching for the illusive artifacts and studying the man's designs had been a huge part of his life before she'd come crashing into it. So she was slightly surprised when he nodded.

"Because I can't ask you to help me with any of it given the state of future events, it seems pointless now to pursue it. Besides," he added with a gentle smirk as he sat behind her and stroked her cheek, "Rambaldi helped me to find everything I've ever wanted and more, and I don't need anything else from him."

She blinked her tired eyes and smiled. "Good answer."

Moving his hand from her face to her stomach that looked like it could get no larger, he asked, "Are you feeling any better?"

"As good as any _other_ beached whale," she quipped.

Vaughn snickered with her and questioned, "Does your back still hurt?"

"Yeah," she sighed. "I probably overdid it yesterday."

"I told you not to help my mother in the greenhouse."

"_My_ mother was helping too and I didn't do nearly as much as she did and I'm sure she's fine."

"Yes, but _she's_ not nine months pregnant," he pointed out.

Sydney let out a loud sigh. "Okay…I'll take it easy until the baby's born…which will _hopefully_ be in the next lifetime."

Ignoring her usually mild grumbling, he said, "Good," as he stood up, and then he leaned over her to kiss her cheek. "Why don't you sleep in a bit more?"

She cast her eyes over her shoulder at him. "I think I will, if you don't mind."

"I'll have one of our mothers check on you in about an hour – is that okay?" he wondered as he walked toward the door.

"Where are _you_ going to be?" she asked instead of answering.

Vaughn nodded, realizing that he hadn't told her that yet and walked back over to her to explain, "Your father and I are going to go check on the progress on the house. We'll be back by lunch, but as usual, you can just send one of the servants if you need me."

Sydney moved her head against the pillow in acknowledgement and with one more kiss to the cheek, her husband of almost a year left her alone to rest.

Laying in the silence of her room, Sydney considered the last year and how drastically her life had changed. From traveling a hundred years through time to live in the past with the man she'd fallen in love with in a week, to seeing the United States when it was still young, to finding out that she was pregnant with a child she'd already seen in a picture, it was all still a little unfathomable sometimes. Adding to it the detail of her mother still being alive and her parents' time-traveling to be with her, and Sydney often felt overwhelmed with the unimaginable and wonderful way her life had turned out. And here she was just days away from being due with her firstborn child. Her son. She was going to be a mother.

Taking a deep breath as she attempted to absorb that yet again, Sydney came to the conclusion that it probably wouldn't sink in completely until he was born. It excited her and frightened her at the same time – after all, she'd grown up without a mother and had no idea how to be a parent. That was why she'd _always_ taken birth control since the start of college – even before SD-6 made it mandatory for her – because she couldn't bear the thought of possibly getting pregnant and trying to decide what to do with a baby.

The anxiety had changed from fear to just excitement whenever she thought about what it was going to be like once Little Eric arrived, because she simply had to recall her parents' constant presence over the last two months to feel at ease, joined with the promise that they were going to be close by for the rest of their lives. She actually didn't feel that paralyzing fear of producing offspring and trying to be the matriarch of a family like she had just a year earlier because her own mother was there with her now, giving her advice, listening to her complaints, and trying to make her as comfortable and assured as possible. Sydney began to feel certain that she _would_ make a good mother.

Sydney finally drifted back to sleep, only to wake up an hour later with more back pain, and decided that it would probably be a good idea to get up just for the change in position. Her stomach felt as tight as ever as she rolled to swing her feet to the floor, pausing for just a minute on the side of the bed to catch her breath. It seemed that all Little Eric did anymore was to keep one foot in her ribs, using the other one to push on her lungs. He gave her the impression that he was huge and she felt like she was going to burst if she didn't go into labor soon, but according to her calculations, she still had another two weeks to go.

She'd managed to put on her robe that had been draped over the foot of the bed and was just thinking that a bath might help to ease some of the gnawing pain when there was a knock at the door, followed by Vaughn's mother's voice, "Sydney, are you awake?"

"Come in, Maman," she told her and Amèlie opened the door and rushed to her side when she saw how she was sitting, leaning on one hand and holding her back with the other.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Sydney assured her. "Just a little sore from yesterday."

Nodding in understanding, Amèlie tried to be accommodating, "Well, would you care for breakfast? I believe there are some leftovers."

She was shaking her head. "I'm not really hungry yet," she said, thinking back to the early months of the pregnancy and how she simply _could not_ eat until she felt her stomach growl. "But thank you." Sydney noted the package in her mother-in-law's hand and asked, "What's that?"

Acting as though she'd forgotten about it, Amèlie glanced down at her hands. "Oh, this is a present for the baby. They are several bonnets that Catherine made in graduating sizes to fit him or her for the first couple of years."

Sydney almost laughed as Amèlie walked over to set the present in the crib with the other things and finally just had to know, "You really like hats, don't you, Maman?" Sydney had received one as a gift from her mother-in-law soon after Amèlie learned of the pregnancy and also one on her birthday and a few other occasions, and she'd given several to Irina as their friendship grew as well.

Amèlie smiled sweetly as she walked back toward the bed and answered honestly, "Yes, I do. It makes me feel fulfilled whenever I give one as a gift." Then she patted Sydney's hand and leaned in to divulge, "Catherine is the same way, which is probably why we're still such good friends."

Sydney knew that the two older ladies had healed their broken bond while dealing with Elizabeth's unplanned pregnancy, and that their lifelong friendship was back to normal. Elizabeth had moved to live with a distant relative in another town and wasn't expected to be seen publicly for another six months or so.

Preparing to leave, Amèlie asked if there was anything she needed, and when Sydney shook her head, the older woman kissed her daughter-in-law on the cheek, warned her to rest, and left the room, reminding her to call for Josephine if she needed help.

She assured her that she would be fine and Amèlie left with a smile. And once she was gone, Sydney wandered over to the baby's crib to finger the little bonnets Catherine had given her, smiling as she pictured Little Eric wearing each one. She and Vaughn knew that they couldn't divulge that they knew without a doubt what the sex of the baby was or that they'd already chosen a name for him, except to her parents; and it had been a bit challenging to remember to call the baby an "it" around his mother. But so far, they'd managed to get around their little slip-ups by saying that it was just a hunch that they would be having a son first.

The muscles around Sydney's stomach tightened a little just then and although she was used to the irregular contractions coming and going, she found that with the back pain, they hurt worse. So she was leaning on the edge of the crib to try to take some of the weight off of her back when her own mother came in the door and found her.

"Sydney, are you – " she started, and then anxiously hurried to her daughter's side when she saw her positioning. "Are you okay?"

Holding up a hand, Sydney waited for it to pass before she answered, "I'm fine. My back is just killing me."

"Why don't you lie back down?"

The younger woman shook her head. "I can't anymore; that hurts too. I was actually just thinking about taking a bath."

Irina agreed that it might relax her sore muscles a little and offered to walk with her to the bathroom and together the women moved arm-in-arm down the hall, making small conversation. Sydney asked how the repairs on the house were coming and Irina commented that she and Jack were surprised at how quickly it was getting done. "You will probably be glad to get rid of us as soon as it's finished," Irina joked as they stepped into the bathroom and she closed the door behind them.

Sydney turned to face her mother and made a face. "Are you kidding me? I was just thinking earlier how great it's been to have you here."

Irina smiled as she leaned over to turn on the water for the tub, "You say that now because you're just getting used to us; but once the baby's born – "

"I'll need you more than ever," Sydney interjected, focusing on her mother's face until Irina stood up again and met her eyes. Mother and daughter studied each other silently for a moment until Sydney further tried to convince her, "Mom, I really don't know what to _do_ with a baby, _especially_ as my due date gets closer…I've been relying on the fact that you'll be here to help me to get through it. I'd be terrified if you weren't here with me. I mean, aren't there like, midnight feedings to deal with?"

Seeing the seriousness in her daughter's eyes, Irina chuckled and gestured for her to get undressed so that she could get in the bathtub. "Among other things. And I'm sure you'll find that feeding your baby in the middle of the night is the best time to bond with him. You're going to love it." Then she added, "But I'll be here as long as you need me, Sydney Anne."

Sydney shared in her mother's smile with the use of her full given name and accepted her steadying hand as she stepped over the lip of the claw-foot tub to sit down in the warm water. Irina then tucked a small, rolled up towel under her head and then made sure that she was comfortable while she waited for the water to rise.

Once the tub was full, Irina turned the water off and told her daughter that she would be in the nearby upstairs sitting room reading and that she should call when she was done or if she needed anything.

"Mom," Sydney called out before she left the room. She waited until Irina had turned back to look at her to sincerely say, "Thank you."

"That's not necessary," she spoke lightly. "I'm your mother."

After sitting in the warm water for just a half an hour, Sydney was finding that it wasn't helping to take away the pain all that much. Adding to it was the contractions she was having every few minutes, and although she wasn't timing them with a watch, she seriously doubted that they were regular and were just the same kind she'd had off and on for over a month. It was becoming quite uncomfortable being pregnant.

Climbing out somewhat cumbersomely when she felt like she'd had enough of an attempt at feeling more comfortable, Sydney resigned to the fact that she would probably just be miserable until the baby decided to make his appearance. She dressed in her robe again and slowly made her way to the door, calling out for her mother as soon as she stepped into the hallway. Irina was right beside her in a moment and took her place with her arm around Sydney's lower back to help ease some of the pressure with each step.

"Did the bath help at all?"

"Not much," Sydney shook her head slightly. "Mom, tell me something – when do you _know_ you're in labor?"

"Well…it's half timing the contractions and judging the intensity of the pains, and half instinct," she smiled. And when Sydney looked over at her for more explanation, she said, "You'll just know, honey. Why do you ask? Do you think you're in labor?"

"I don't know," Sydney shook her head. "I just feel weird. I thought I was just sore and tired, but why would I be? I mean, I didn't do that much in the garden yesterday, and I'm not due for another couple of weeks – or at least, that's what we thought, but my period was all off back then because I was coming off the birth control shots, so I could be totally wrong, but…"

Irina smiled at her daughter's babbling, and as they reached Sydney's bedroom door, she asked, "Do you want me to send for the doctor?"

But her daughter shook her head as they went in. "Not yet. I'd hate to have him come for a false alarm. I'll time the contractions for a while first just to be sure. Dr. Boulet is really close by anyway."

Grinning slightly, Irina commented, "Which I'm sure was all part of Michael's plan when he sold the doctor the house right next door."

Sydney looked over her shoulder as she sat down on the bed and smiled proudly. "He was a rather convincing salesman when it came to Dr. Boulet. You know he's the doctor we had on the ship on the way home that told me I was pregnant."

"Really?" Irina questioned and Sydney nodded. "No, I didn't know that."

As she adjusted on the bed to prepare to lie down, the younger woman continued, "When he visited me the last time before we arrived home, he mentioned that he was considering moving to the countryside here in Paris – Michael told him he had the perfect house for him."

"Smart man, your husband," Irina said as she fluffed the pillow under Sydney's head. "Can you see the mantel clock from here to time the contractions?"

Sydney looked and shook her head negatively and then remembered, "Vau—Michael's watch." She pointed to the other side of the bed, "It's on his nightstand."

Irina walked around to the other side and picked up Vaughn's pocket watch, reaching across Vaughn's empty space to hand it to Sydney. "Do you want me to go get Michael now?"

She made an uncertain face. "Maybe…yeah; just to be safe," she decided.

Rounding the bed again to stand beside her, Sydney's mother gently nudged her, telling her to lie on her left side facing the door. "Just keep timing the contractions," she instructed her as she stroked the hair away from her face. "And I'll be right back."

Sydney did as she was told and noted the time of the beginning of each pain and began to notice after a few that they _were_ pretty steady at about four minutes apart. And that didn't even include how intense the pains had become – each one involved her whole stomach and not just the top or the bottom muscles as they had in the weeks before. And then there was the strong pressure she felt pushing down toward her thighs with each one…

Before Irina even came back, Sydney _knew_, just as her mother had said… 

Managing to maneuver herself to a standing position between contractions with the intention of going to the top of the stairs to call for help, Sydney leaned on the bed when another one struck, and knew there was no way she would even make it to the door until it was over. So she just stood there, holding her stomach up, trying to breathe while recalling her SD-6 training for enduring torture, thinking that it might come in handy.

It worked, she thought, when she was able to stand up a little straighter and take a deeper breath, but when the next contraction came, she was back to being hunched over, leaning on the edge of the bed, being forced to take shallow breaths and wait for it to pass. It was in this position that Vaughn found her in as he hurriedly came in the door to assess her condition. Jack and Irina were on his heels, but it was Vaughn that rushed to his wife's side, worriedly calling out her name. 

"Michael," she gasped, clearly visibly relieved to see him.

He gently but firmly held her upper arms. "Is it time already?"

"Get the doctor," Sydney nodded stiffly, letting out a ragged breath. "I'm in labor." 


	22. Epilogue

**Epilogue:**

The pains were right on top of each other now, and Vaughn was fighting an internal battle, wishing he could take it all away from his wife. Even if he could take it on himself, he knew that _anything_ would be better than watching her suffer this way. He held onto her hand, hoping that by the way she was squeezing the life out of him, she was transferring some of her pain to him. He and Irina were present at Sydney's insistence – although it was unusual for the husband to be in the room while a baby was being born – and as he coached her the way he should and told her that she was doing a great job, he was inwardly praying that both her and their child would be safe and healthy above all else.

Irina mopped the sweat away from Sydney's forehead with a washcloth as she relaxed back against the pillow between her pushes and also assisted the doctor any other way she could, including helping Sydney sit up when another contraction would build. After a solid hour of pushing, Sydney was becoming tired, and it was getting harder and harder for her to sit up on her own power.

Finally, they heard what they'd all been longing to hear the doctor say, "The baby's crowning – one or two more pushes and you'll be done, Sydney."

Sydney seemed to get a second wind with those words and was able to concentrate her efforts into getting the baby out, and as soon as it was over and the pressure released, she fell back against the bed, panting as Vaughn cheered her on and kissed her fully when the baby released its birth cry.

"It's a girl," Dr. Boulet said proudly, holding her up for her new parents to see. Sydney could do nothing but smile at her daughter as her body wound down from several hours' worth of pain.

Within a minute, the doctor had their little girl wrapped up in a blanket and passed her off to allow Irina to introduce her to her mom and dad. Vaughn carefully took his daughter to get a good look at her and sat down beside his wife on the bed to share the moment with her while the doctor and Irina worked to clean Sydney up.

"She's beautiful, Sydney," Irina congratulated her after they managed to change the bedding from underneath her daughter and she got another peek at her granddaughter. "Should I go get the others?"

"Would you mind?" Sydney hoped. "Please?"

Irina smiled and headed for the bedroom door with a handful of soiled sheets used during the birth. "I'll be right back," she whispered as she shut the door behind her.

She came back a few minutes later with three more relatives that wanted to see their new family member, and she checked to make sure Sydney was covered before allowing them to enter. Sydney was already holding her new little one and kissing the wrinkly pink skin on her face when her parents and mother-in-law entered with an eight-year-old boy dragging behind; the latter of which brought a bigger smile to Sydney's face as he was nudged forward by his grandparents.

"Eric," Sydney spoke softly, grinning for what she was worth at her son as she felt her husband's loving hand on her back. "You have a little sister."

_The End_


End file.
